Korean Hair Salon Vocabulary: 30 Words with Romanization and Audio

Korean Hair Salon Vocabulary at a Glance

A hair salon visit has a clear order, and the list follows it. You choose the shop, meet the stylist, describe the cut, decide on colour or a perm, ask about hair care and settle the details. That is why the groups run from salon and staff, to cuts and styles, to colour and perm, to hair care, and last to requests and price. The page is a child of Korean Beauty Vocabulary, and it pairs with Korean Skincare Vocabulary. For the single word, see hair salon in Korean.

Most words are nouns, and most of the cut and care words are loanwords. A few are native words that every speaker knows, such as 머리 and 숱, and a few are Sino-Korean, such as 두피 and 탈모. The next section ranks the words by how soon you will need them.

Which Hair Salon Words Should You Learn First?

Learn 미용실 (hair salon), 커트 (haircut), 염색 (hair dyeing), 파마 (perm) and 길이 (length) first. With those five you can book a salon, say what you want done and describe how long you want your hair. Add 앞머리 and 단발 when you need to be more exact.

• Words to say. 미용실, 커트, 염색, 파마, 앞머리, 길이. These are what you ask for.
• Words to recognise. 미용사, 디자이너, 원장님. You hear these when staff introduce themselves.
• Words to understand when spoken. 숱, 가르마 and 두피. The stylist uses them when talking about your hair.

At five new words a day, the whole list of 30 takes six days plus review. Start with the second and third groups, because they cover the main requests.

Salons are one place where a picture helps more than a word. Many people show a 사진 (photo) of the style they want, and the stylist then explains the details with the words above. The scene below puts eight of the 30 words on one salon.

Word · 8

1. 1

   미용실

   Play

   miyongsil

   hair salon; beauty salon

2. 2

   미용사

   Play

   miyongsa

   hairdresser; beautician

3. 3

   커트

   Play

   keoteu

   haircut

4. 4

   앞머리

   Play

   ammeori

   bangs; fringe

5. 5

   파마

   Play

   pama

   perm

6. 6

   샴푸

   Play

   syampu

   shampoo

7. 7

   드라이

   Play

   deurai

   blow-dry; hair dryer

8. 8

   사진

   Play

   sajin

   photo

What Is the Difference between 미용실, 이발소 and 헤어숍?

Korean has three common words for the shop, and they overlap. 이발소 (ibalso) is the traditional barber shop, with a long history of cutting men's hair. 미용실 (miyongsil) is the general hair salon, and it is the word to use when you are not sure. 헤어숍 (heeosyop) is a modern shop name, from the English hair shop, that you will see on signs and in ads.

Today people of every gender use a 미용실, and an 이발소 is now a more specialised shop. If you want a general haircut, search for 미용실. If you want a classic barber experience, search for 이발소. The word 헤어숍 is common on map apps and shop signs, and it usually means a stylish salon.

Staff are often called 미용사 (miyongsa), the licensed hairdresser, or 디자이너 (dijaineo), the stylist. The head of a small salon is often called 원장님 (wonjangnim). Customers can say 안녕하세요 to any of them and then state the request. The sections below teach the words you need after the greeting.

Salon and Staff

The first group names the place and the people. 미용실, 이발소 and 헤어숍 are three shop words. 미용사, 디자이너 and 원장님 are three staff words. Knowing which is which helps you book and follow who is speaking.

Notice the ending 님 on 원장님. It is a respectful suffix that you also see in 사장님 and 선생님. In the salon, you may use 원장님 for the head and 디자이너 for a stylist. The ending marks respect and does not mean the person is old.

The verb 자르다 (to cut) is the key verb of the whole page. In the polite present it is 잘라요, because it is a 르 irregular verb (the ㅡ drops and an extra ㄹ is added), and with 주세요 it becomes 잘라 주세요 (please cut). You will use it in almost every sentence.

Now that the shop and the staff are clear, the next group is about the cut itself.

Cuts and Styles

The second group is the core of any salon visit. 머리 is the word for hair, and it also means head. 커트 is a cut. 단발, 숏컷, 앞머리 and 레이어드 are four styles or features that you can ask for by name.

Two grammar patterns carry the whole group. The first is noun + (으)로 + verb + 주세요, which means please do it as noun. 단발로 잘라 주세요 is please cut it as a bob, and 레이어드로 해 주세요 is please do it as a layered cut. The particle 로 comes after a vowel or ㄹ, and 으로 after other consonants.

The second pattern is noun + 만 + verb, where 만 limits the request: 커트만 하고 싶어요 means I only want a cut. This is the sentence that stops the stylist from adding colour or a treatment.

The word 앞머리 has a sound change worth knowing. The final ㅍ in 앞 is said as ㅂ, and the ㅂ becomes ㅁ before the ㅁ in 머리, so the word is said [암머리], not [압머리].

Colour and perm are the next topic, and they are the services that take the longest.

Colour and Perm

The third group is the longest-running part of a salon visit. 염색 is dyeing, 탈색 is bleaching, and 갈색 is brown. 파마, 매직 and 볼륨 name three ways to change the shape of hair: a perm, a straightening perm and added volume.

The word 염색 can be written with or without a verb ending. 염색해요 is I dye (my hair), and 염색을 하고 싶어요 is I want to dye. For colour, the pattern is colour + (으)로 + 염색해요, as in 갈색으로 염색해요. The same particle appears in 단발로 and 갈색으로, and here it means into or as.

A perm is a long process, so the question 몇 시간 걸려요? (How many hours does it take?) is useful. The question word 몇 is explained on the 몇 how many page, and the time words are on telling time. Another useful question is 가격이 얼마예요?, covered below.

After colour and perm, the hair itself needs care.

Hair Care

The fourth group covers the products and conditions that come up after a service. 샴푸, 린스 and 트리트먼트 are the three washing and conditioning products. 두피 is the scalp, 탈모 is hair loss, and 드라이 is the blow-dry that ends a visit.

The word 린스 shows how loanwords drift. In Korean salons 린스 usually means conditioner, and 컨디셔너 is the precise word. The word 트리트먼트 names a deeper treatment that usually costs extra.

For hair care sentences, the pattern is body part + 이/가 + describing word. 두피가 가려워요 uses 가렵다, which becomes 가려워요 because it is a ㅂ irregular adjective. The pattern 탈모가 걱정돼요 uses 걱정되다, to be worried, and the noun 걱정 (worry) appears in the Korean Mental Health Vocabulary lesson.

The last group turns from the hair to the request itself.

Requests and Price

The final group names the small details that make a request exact. 길이 is length. 숱 is the thickness of hair. 가르마 is the parting. 스타일 is the style as a whole, and 사진 is the photo that you show. 가격 is the price, the last thing you settle.

The word 숱 has a sound that is easy to miss. Its final ㅌ is not said as a separate sound: alone it is [숟], and with the subject particle 이 it becomes [수치], through the palatalization rule. The same thing happens in 같이 [가치]. The page on palatalization explains it.

The verb 타다 has many meanings in Korean, and 가르마를 타다 is a fixed phrase meaning to part one's hair. The verb 보이다 (to show, to be seen) with 주세요 gives 보여 주세요, which is the polite way to ask to see something.

For the price answer, see Money and Prices. The next section puts all the groups together in one conversation.

How Do You Ask for a Haircut in Korean?

Most requests follow the same four steps: say what you want, show a photo, give the length and ask the price. The conversation below uses words from every group. The customer lines are all patterns that you have seen in the tables.

• 손님: 커트하고 염색하고 싶어요. (I want a cut and colour.)
• 디자이너: 사진 있어요? (Do you have a photo?)
• 손님: 네, 여기 사진이에요. (Yes, here is the photo.)
• 손님: 길이는 어깨까지예요. (The length is to the shoulders.)
• 디자이너: 앞머리는요? (What about bangs?)
• 손님: 앞머리는 잘라 주세요. (Please cut the bangs.)
• 손님: 가격이 얼마예요? (How much does it cost?)

Read the conversation twice, once as each speaker. Then swap the details: change 어깨 (shoulder) to another point, such as 턱 (chin), or change 염색 to 파마.

The table below shows the sentence frames that appear in the dialogue and the tables, so you can build new requests.

Booking by phone follows the same pattern, with the polite opening 안녕하세요 and the request 예약하고 싶어요 (I want to book).

How Do You Pronounce These Words?

Hair salon words contain several sound changes, because many end in a consonant that changes before the next sound. Standard pronunciation follows the National Institute of Korean Language (국립국어원) rules. The romanization follows the Revised Romanization of Korean, which writes tense letters such as kk and tt but does not show tensing caused by a neighbouring sound.

Make the tense sounds in 탈색 and 갈색 with a tight throat and no puff of breath. The page on tensification explains why a stop sound makes the next consonant tense. Say the vowels ㅓ and ㅡ in 헤어숍, 디자이너 and 트리트먼트 with unrounded lips.

Audio and Slow Playback

Every word and every example sentence has its own clip. The five clips below replay the trickiest words slowly. Play one, repeat it aloud, then play it again and compare.

What Mistakes Do Learners Make with Hair Salon Words?

These five mistakes cause most of the confusion at a salon.

1. Asking an 이발소 for a perm. An 이발소 is a barber shop. For colour, perm or styling, go to a 미용실.
2. Saying 머리 only for the head. 머리 means hair and head. Say 머리를 잘라요 for a haircut, and 머리가 아파요 for a headache.
3. Leaving out 만 when you want only a cut. 커트하고 싶어요 is correct, but it does not rule out extras. Say 커트만 하고 싶어요.
4. Using 린스 for a treatment. 린스 is a conditioner. A deeper treatment is 트리트먼트.
5. Skipping the price. Ask 가격이 얼마예요? before you agree to colour or a perm, since those services can cost much more than a cut.

Learning the particle 만 and the question about price removes most of the risk.

Practice: Flashcards and Worksheet

Study in three steps. First, run the flashcard deck in recognition mode until you recognise each of the 30 words. Second, switch to listening mode. Third, take the quiz. The deck covers all 30 words with audio, and your progress stays in your browser. The vocabulary flashcard decks page lists the other decks.

A printable worksheet for these words (word list, matching, writing practice, fill-in-the-blank exercises and answer key) is available in A4 and US Letter from the download card on this page. For practice, copy the 30 words by hand and write the meaning beside each one. Then write two sentences of your own, such as 앞머리를 자르고 싶어요 (I want to cut my bangs).

Where to Go Next

After this page, continue with Korean Skincare Vocabulary, or review the makeup words on Korean Makeup Vocabulary. For the hub of all three, return to Korean Beauty Vocabulary. For the price pattern, see Money and Prices.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Do You Say Hair Salon in Korean?

A hair salon is 미용실 (miyongsil). A traditional barber shop is 이발소 (ibalso), and 헤어숍 (heeosyop) is a modern shop name. Say 미용실에 가요 for I go to the hair salon. For the single-word lookup, see the page on hair salon in Korean.

How Do You Say Perm in Korean?

A perm is 파마 (pama), a loanword from permanent wave. Say 파마를 하고 싶어요 for I want a perm. A straightening perm is 매직 (maejik). A perm takes time, so ask 몇 시간 걸려요? (How many hours does it take?).

How Do You Say Haircut in Korean?

A haircut is 커트 (keoteu), also written 컷. Say 커트만 하고 싶어요 for I only want a cut, and 머리를 잘라요 for I cut my hair. A very short cut is 숏컷 (syotkeot), and a bob is 단발 (danbal).

How Do You Pronounce 앞머리 (ammeori)?

Say am-meo-ri, as in [암머리]. The final ㅍ of 앞 is said as ㅂ, and ㅂ before ㅁ becomes ㅁ. The Revised Romanization writes ammeori. Press the audio button on this page for the normal and slow versions.

Is the Romanization on This Page Official?

It follows the Revised Romanization of Korean, which South Korea adopted on 7 July 2000 and whose rules the National Institute of Korean Language (국립국어원) publishes. It is a learning aid and does not show every sound change, so rely on the Hangul and the audio.

Is There a Printable Worksheet for Hair Salon Words?

A printable worksheet for these words (word list, matching, writing practice, fill-in-the-blank exercises and answer key) is available in A4 and US Letter from the download card on this page. For practice, copy the tables on this page by hand or use the flashcard deck, which carries the same 30 words.

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