How to Say Please in Korean: 12 Polite Request Forms for Every Situation

The Short Answer

Korean has no single word for "please." Politeness is woven into the verb ending system itself. The most practical phrase for everyday requests is 주세요 (juseyo, "please give/do"), while 부탁합니다 (butakhamnida, "I request/entrust to you") handles favors and abstract requests.

Korean is spoken by over 80 million people worldwide, according to Ethnologue's 2024 data. Its politeness system is fundamentally different from European languages. Where English adds "please" to the beginning or end of a sentence, Korean embeds politeness into the verb ending. The -요 (yo) suffix IS the "please." Drop it, and your sentence shifts from a polite request to a blunt command. Whether you're looking up "please in korean" for travel, study, or conversation, this guide covers everything you need.

"In Korean, politeness is not an optional additive like the English word 'please.' It is a grammatical obligation encoded in the verb system, where the choice of ending signals not just courtesy but the entire social relationship between speaker and listener."

(Lucien Brown, Korean Honorifics and Politeness in Second Language Learning, John Benjamins, 2011)

This guide covers 12 Korean expressions for making polite requests, organized by formality and context. Each includes Hangul, romanization, pronunciation, an example sentence, and cultural notes so you can make requests confidently in any situation.

Quick Reference: Korean "Please" Expressions at a Glance

Standard Polite Requests

These two expressions are the workhorses of Korean politeness. Between them, they cover the vast majority of everyday request situations.

주세요

If you learn only one way to say "please" in Korean, make it 주세요. This single expression will get you through restaurants, shops, taxis, and hotels. It comes from the verb 주다 (juda, "to give"), conjugated into the polite request form.

The structure is straightforward: place what you want before 주세요. Ordering at a restaurant? 김치찌개 주세요 (Kimchi-jjigae juseyo, "Kimchi stew, please"). Need the bill? 계산서 주세요 (Gyesanseo juseyo, "The bill, please"). You can also attach it to verb stems to request actions: 도와 주세요 (Dowa juseyo, "Please help me") or 기다려 주세요 (Gidaryeo juseyo, "Please wait").

The National Institute of Korean Language (국립국어원) classifies 주세요 as the standard polite request form suitable for most daily interactions. It is neither too formal nor too casual: the Goldilocks zone of Korean politeness.

부탁합니다

Where 주세요 handles concrete, tangible requests, 부탁합니다 covers the abstract. The root word 부탁 (butak) means "request" or "favor," and it carries a nuance of entrusting something to the other person's care.

You will hear 부탁합니다 constantly in Korean business settings: 잘 부탁합니다 (Jal butakhamnida, "Please take good care of things") is said when starting a new project, meeting a new colleague, or asking someone to handle a task. It is also the phrase Koreans use when handing over a responsibility, and there is an implied trust that the other person will handle it well.

As linguist Anna Wierzbicka notes in Cross-Cultural Pragmatics, languages encode different cultural assumptions about requests. Korean's distinction between 주세요 (give me) and 부탁합니다 (I entrust to you) reflects a culture where asking a favor means acknowledging the other person's effort and expressing gratitude in advance.

Formal and Business Requests

Korean workplace culture demands precise calibration of politeness. These expressions add extra layers of deference for professional settings.

부탁드립니다

The verb 드리다 (deurida) is the honorific form of 주다 (juda, "to give"). By replacing 합니다 with 드립니다, you lower yourself and elevate the listener. This is the default "please" in Korean corporate emails and formal business communication.

According to King Sejong Institute's educational standards, learners working in Korean business environments should master 부탁드립니다 early, as it appears in nearly every professional email sign-off and meeting request.

해 주시겠습니까?

This structure stacks two politeness mechanisms: the -시- (shi) honorific infix, which elevates the listener, and the -겠- (get) suffix, which frames the request as a question about willingness rather than a direct command. The result is one of the most deferential request forms in Korean.

You will hear this in boardroom meetings, from junior employees addressing senior executives, and in formal customer service contexts. It gives the listener full agency to decline, a key aspect of Korean politeness norms.

주십시오

This is the formal counterpart of 주세요. You will encounter it on signs (문을 닫아 주십시오, "Please close the door"), in subway announcements, and in official documents. In everyday conversation, it sounds overly bureaucratic, so stick with 주세요 unless you are making a public announcement.

Casual Requests Among Friends

When speaking with close friends, siblings, or younger people, Korean drops the polite endings entirely. This is 반말 (banmal), casual speech.

줘

줘 is the banmal form of 주세요. The -요 ending is gone, and with it goes the built-in politeness. Using 줘 with a stranger, elder, or boss would be a serious social misstep. Among close friends, however, it is perfectly natural.

Notice how 좀 (jom, "a little") appears in the example. This small word functions as a softener in Korean requests, taking the edge off what might otherwise sound like a blunt demand. More on 좀 below.

부탁해

The casual version of 부탁합니다. Where 부탁합니다 carries professional weight, 부탁해 is a warm, friendly "please" tacked onto requests between close friends. You will hear it constantly in K-dramas between characters of the same age who are close.

Indirect and Extra-Polite Requests

Korean culture places high value on not imposing on others. These indirect forms give the listener room to decline gracefully, a cornerstone of Korean interpersonal dynamics.

해 주실 수 있으세요?

This is the Korean equivalent of "Could you possibly...?" Rather than directly asking someone to do something, you ask whether they are able to. This small shift (from command to inquiry) gives the listener an easy out and signals that you respect their time and autonomy.

This is the perfect form for approaching strangers. Need someone to take your photo at a tourist spot? 사진 좀 찍어 주실 수 있으세요? is natural and respectful.

해 주시면 감사하겠습니다

This is the Korean equivalent of "I would greatly appreciate it if..." It combines a conditional clause (해 주시면, "if you do it for me") with pre-emptive gratitude (감사하겠습니다, "I would be grateful"). It is the gold standard for formal email requests and high-stakes professional communication.

Special Cases

제발

If you watch K-dramas, you have heard 제발 dozens of times, usually shouted in the rain during a breakup scene. It is important to understand that 제발 is NOT the Korean equivalent of a polite "please." It means "I'm begging you" and carries intense emotional weight.

Using 제발 to order food (제발 커피 주세요) would be like saying "I'm begging you, coffee, please" in English: technically grammatical but deeply strange. Reserve 제발 for genuinely desperate situations.

좀

좀 is the secret ingredient in natural-sounding Korean requests. Literally meaning "a little" or "somewhat," it functions as a softener that takes the edge off any request. Compare: 도와주세요 (Help me) versus 좀 도와주세요 (Could you help me a bit?). The second sounds gentler and more considerate.

Native speakers insert 좀 into requests instinctively. The National Institute of Korean Language notes that 좀 has evolved far beyond its literal meaning of "a little" and now primarily functions as a pragmatic softener in conversational Korean.

Korean Speech Levels and "Please"

Understanding how Korean speech levels affect requests is essential. The same request changes dramatically depending on which level you use.

The polite level (해요체, haeyoche) is your safe default. According to the King Sejong Institute's guidelines for Korean learners, mastering the polite speech level should be the first priority, as it works in approximately 80% of daily interactions.

How to Respond When Someone Asks You Politely

Practice With Real Korean Content

Reading about request forms gives you the knowledge, but hearing them used naturally by native speakers is what builds real fluency. K-dramas are filled with request scenes. Watch how characters in Crash Landing on You navigate North-South Korean politeness differences, or how office hierarchies play out through request language in Misaeng.

Wordy lets you watch Korean movies and shows with interactive subtitles, tapping on any request phrase to see its meaning, speech level, and cultural context in real time. Instead of memorizing grammar rules from a textbook, you absorb natural request patterns from authentic conversations.

For more Korean language guides, explore our blog or check out our recommended Korean dramas for language learning. You can also visit our Korean learning page to start practicing today.