Korean Internet Slang: 45 Words with Romanization and Audio

Korean Internet Slang at a Glance

The list has 45 words in five groups of nine. It starts with reactions that you can type in one syllable, then moves through fun and food, online posts, people and fandom, and the feelings that Koreans compress into short words. It belongs to Korean slang, and four neighbouring pages go further: Gen Z slang, social slang, abbreviations and shortened words and texting shortcuts. For the plain dictionary word, see slang in Korean.

This page leaves out vulgar slang on purpose. Vulgar words and the prefixes that make words rude are collected on Korean swear words, with notes on when they offend.

Which Internet Slang Words Should You Learn First?

Learn 대박 (awesome), 헐 (whoa), 인정 (agreed), 꿀잼 (great fun) and 좋아요 (like) first. They appear in almost every chat and comment thread, and they are safe among friends. 대박이에요 (That is awesome) is the single most useful slang sentence for a new learner.

• Words to say. 대박, 헐, 인정, 꿀잼, 노잼, 맛집. They are common and low-risk among friends.
• Words to recognise. 갑분싸, 현타, 멘붕, 극혐, 고인물. You will read them more than you say them.
• Words to use with care. 관종, 아싸, 노답. They can sound rude if aimed at another person.

The scene below shows a phone screen with ten numbered slang words and symbols, so that you can tie each word to a picture.

Word · 10

1. 1

   대박

   Play

   daebak

   awesome; amazing

2. 2

   헐

   Play

   heol

   whoa; no way

3. 3

   꿀잼

   Play

   kkuljaem

   great fun

4. 4

   먹방

   Play

   meokbang

   eating broadcast

5. 5

   댓글

   Play

   daetgeul

   comment (online)

6. 6

   좋아요

   Play

   joayo

   like (button)

7. 7

   구독

   Play

   gudok

   subscription

8. 8

   인싸

   Play

   inssa

   popular person; insider

9. 9

   최애

   Play

   choeae

   favourite (most loved)

10. 10

    현타

    Play

    hyeonta

    reality-check moment

Reactions and Exclamations

Reaction words are the quickest slang to learn, because they stand alone. A reader sees 헐 under a post, or a friend answers with 인정, and no sentence is needed. This first group also includes 속어, the neutral word for slang, and 핵, a small prefix that raises the volume of any word.

Example Sentences

Reaction words work as one-word answers, but they also fit the pattern word + 이에요 or 예요. 대박이에요 means that is awesome, and 노답이에요 means it is hopeless. After a vowel, use 예요, as in 레전드예요. Say each sentence aloud after the audio.

대박 is the best-known Korean slang word. It can describe a lucky win, a hit film or a shocking piece of news, and the tone of voice shows whether you are pleased or alarmed. 헐 is only a sound, and it has no standard spelling beyond this one, so you will also see 허얼 with a longer vowel. 핵 literally means nucleus, and as a prefix it works like super: 핵꿀잼 is super fun, and 핵인싸 appears in the people group below.

Fun, Food and Everyday Life

A large part of internet talk is about what is fun, what to eat and how to live. The first four words judge a thing, and the next five describe food and daily habits.

꿀 (honey) is a favourite slang prefix for good things, as in 꿀잼 and 꿀팁. 노 (no) is the opposite, as in 노잼. 먹방 combines 먹다 (to eat) and 방송 (broadcast), and the ㅂ of 방 is said tense after the final ㄱ, so the word sounds like meok-ppang. The prefix 혼 (alone) builds a small family: 혼밥, 혼술 and 혼영 (watching a film alone). 갓생 is a Gen Z word, and the next page in the series, Gen Z slang, covers more of them.

How Do You Say Online Posts and Sharing in Korean?

Korean social media has its own vocabulary, and many words are English loanwords. A few are short Korean forms of English words, such as 악플, and a few are real Korean inventions, such as 짤. This group names what you do in a comment thread and on a video channel.

악플 and 선플 are a neat pair, because both are built from the English word reply and a Korean piece, 악 (bad) or 선 (good). 좋아요 is the like button, and the ㅎ in it is silent, so you say jo-a-yo. The verb 달다 (to attach) is used for a comment, because a comment is stuck to a post. 누르다 (to press) is irregular, and the polite form is 눌러요, so check a table before you write it. Compare these words with the shorter forms on texting shortcuts.

People and Fandom

Korean internet slang sorts people into types. A person can be an 인싸 or an 아싸, a fan can be a 덕후, and a fan's life has stages: joining, loving and leaving. Many of these words are short forms of English words, and 덕후 comes from a Japanese word; all are used among peers.

입덕 and 탈덕 are a pair: 입 (enter) and 탈 (leave) are joined to 덕, which is short for 덕후. 관종 is the one word in this group to use with care. It can sound like an insult when you aim it at another person, and people mostly use it about themselves, as a joke. 인싸 and 아싸 are neutral among friends, although 아싸 can sting if said about someone else. More social types are on social slang.

Feelings and Trends

The last group packs complete feelings into two or three syllables. Korean speakers love shortening a long phrase to its first sounds, and each word here is such a short form. Learn them as chunks and not as separate letters.

Most of these words are acronyms of a longer phrase, and the pattern is worth learning. 현타 takes the first sound of 현실 and 타임, 멘붕 takes the first of 멘탈 and 붕괴, and 갑분싸 takes one syllable from each word of a sentence. If you learn the long phrase, the short word is easy to remember. The page on abbreviations and shortened words lists more of them. 극혐 and 득템 are heard in speech as well as in text.

When Is It Safe to Use Korean Slang?

Slang fits friends, peers and online spaces, and it does not fit every setting. Use these words with people your age and in chats where others use them. With a boss, a teacher, an older person or a stranger, use the polite -요 or formal -ㅂ니다 style and standard words: 아주 좋아요 (very good) in place of 대박, and 재미있어요 (it is fun) in place of 꿀잼. Compare how a friend writes 꿀잼이야 with how you would write 재미있어요 to a teacher. The same meaning has two registers.

The table below pairs common words from this page with the standard Korean they replace, and gives each a register label: neutral (fine in most settings, including the news), casual (friends and online only) or risky (can offend, even among friends).

Slang also ages quickly. A word that is common one year can sound dated a few years later, and spellings differ from site to site. The words on this page are widely understood, but check a recent source or ask a Korean friend before you use a new one. If a word uses a vulgar prefix, it is not on this page, and you can read about those words on Korean swear words.

Where Does Korean Internet Slang Come From?

Four patterns create most of it. The first is shortening: 현실 자각 타임 becomes 현타. The second is borrowing from English: 레전드 (legend) and 플렉스 (flex) come straight from English. The third is mixing a Korean piece with an English one: 악플 combines 악 (bad) with 플 from reply. The fourth is a playful prefix: 꿀 (honey) means good, 노 (no) means none, 핵 (nucleus) means very, and 혼 (alone) means by oneself. Once you notice these four patterns, you can guess many new words before you look them up. Chat apps add one more: words typed as initial consonants only, such as ㅇㅈ for 인정, which are collected on texting shortcuts.

How Do You Pronounce Korean Internet Slang?

Slang follows the standard sound rules of the National Institute of Korean Language (국립국어원), but its spelling is looser than a dictionary word. The Revised Romanization of Korean writes the tense letters kk, tt, pp and ss, but it does not show tensing caused by a neighbouring sound, and it keeps the h in nouns such as deokhu, so rely on the Hangul and the audio.

Three habits cover most of the list. After a final ㄱ or ㅂ, the next consonant is said tense, as in 먹방, 입덕 and 갑분싸. A ㅎ that meets ㄱ makes a strong ㅋ, as in 극혐 and 덕후. And a final consonant moves forward before ㅇ, as in 속어. Learn the spoken form with the spelling, and do not pause between syllables.

Audio and Slow Playback

Each word and sentence has its own clip. Five clips replay the hardest words slowly: eating show, productive life, becoming a fan, disgusting and devoted fan. Play one, repeat it aloud, then play it again and compare.

What Mistakes Do Learners Make with Korean Internet Slang?

Five confusions come up again and again.

1. Using slang with older people. Slang is for peers. To a boss, teacher or elder, 대박이에요 can sound careless. Use polite words such as 아주 좋아요 and the polite -요 style, and keep the slang for friends.
2. Reading 대박 as only good news. 대박 can also react to shocking bad news, with a different tone. A hit film is 대박, and so is a surprise accident. The tone of voice and the next sentence tell you which.
3. Treating 관종 as a compliment. 관종 means someone who wants attention, and it often sounds like an insult. People use it about themselves as a joke. Do not use it for another person.
4. Saying the ㅎ in 좋아요. The ㅎ of 좋 is silent before a vowel, so the word is [조아요]. If you pronounce it as joh-a-yo, it will sound unnatural.
5. Assuming slang spellings are fixed. Online spelling varies: 헐 and 허얼, 꿀잼 and 꿀 잼. Choose the form in the dictionary or the one most people use, and expect to see variants.

In each case the word is right, but the setting, the tone or the sound is wrong. Keep the pairs together, such as 대박 and 아주 좋아요, 인싸 and 관종, and 좋아요 and joh-a-yo, and the rest of the 45 words stay in place.

Practice: Flashcards and Worksheet

Study in three steps. First, run the deck in recognition mode and take one group of nine words at a time. Second, switch to listening mode and play the clip before you flip each card. Third, take the five-question quiz. Progress stays in your browser, and 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 additional practice, write three chat lines to a friend that use 대박, 꿀잼 and 인정.

Where to Go Next

After this page, continue with Gen Z slang for newer words, abbreviations and shortened words for more short forms, or texting shortcuts for typed symbols. For rude words and their risks, read Korean swear words. To move up a level, return to Korean slang.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Does 대박 (daebak) Mean?

대박 means awesome, amazing or a big hit. It can also be a jackpot. Say 대박이에요 for that is awesome. It is casual slang, so use it with friends. With a boss or an elder, choose a polite phrase such as 아주 좋아요. The tone of voice shows whether you are happy or shocked.

How Do You Pronounce 먹방 (meokbang)?

Say meok-ppang in two beats. The ㅂ of 방 is said tense after the final ㄱ, so the word sounds like [먹빵] and not [멍방]. The vowel ㅓ is a relaxed, unrounded sound. Press the audio button on this page to hear the word and the slow clip.

How Many Internet Slang Words Should I Learn First?

Start with five: 대박, 헐, 인정, 꿀잼 and 좋아요. They appear in most chats and comment threads. The whole list of 45 takes about nine days at five new words a day, with a short review of earlier words each day.

Is It Safe to Use Korean Slang with Everyone?

No. Slang suits friends and peers. With a boss, a teacher or an older person, use the polite style and standard words. Some words, such as 관종, can sound rude when you aim them at another person.

Where Can I Practise Internet Slang with Flashcards?

Use the deck on this page, which holds all 45 words with Hangul, romanization and audio, in recognition and listening modes. The vocabulary flashcard decks page lists the decks for other topics. Progress is saved only in your browser.

Is the Romanization on This Page Official?

It follows the Revised Romanization of Korean, which South Korea adopted in 2000 and whose rules the National Institute of Korean Language (국립국어원) publishes. It is a learning aid, and it does not show tensing caused by a neighbouring sound, so rely on the Hangul and the audio.