Key Facts
- Hangul: 손님; Revised Romanization: sonnim
- Part of speech: noun
- Origin: native
- Register: Neutral to polite; 손님 is the standard word for guest or customer, and shop staff address customers as 손님.
Guest in Korean: What Does 손님 Mean?
손님 is neutral to polite. It is the standard word for a visitor to your home and for a customer in a shop or restaurant, and staff address customers as 손님 directly. The ending 님 is a respectful suffix attached to 손.
How Do You Pronounce 손님?
Spelled son-nim, the word is pronounced as written: the final ㄴ of the first syllable meets the ㄴ that starts the second, so you hold the nasal sound a little longer.
Example Sentences with 손님
손님이 오세요.
Sonnimi oseyo.
A guest is coming.
A home sentence with the honorific 오세요, which respects the guest.
손님, 어서 오세요.
Sonnim, eoseo oseyo.
Welcome, customer.
The greeting heard in shops. The call 손님 plus 어서 오세요 means "welcome".
우리 집에 손님이 많아요.
Uri jibe sonnimi manayo.
We have many guests at our house.
A busy-house line. 우리 집 means "our house", and 많아요 means "there are many".
Common Phrases and Collocations
Hosting and shop talk both appear here.
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 손님을 모시다 | to host a guest |
| 단골손님 | regular customer |
| 손님이 많다 | to have many customers |
The Mistake to Avoid
Mistake: treating 손님 as a house guest only.
Correction: it is also the normal word for a customer, both when staff talk about customers and when they address one directly: 손님, 어서 오세요.
손님 Compared with Similar Words
고객 is a formal business term for a customer, while 손님 is the spoken word. 방문객 is a visitor, for example to an event.
| Word | Meaning | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| 손님 | guest | This page's word |
| 고객 | customer (formal) | 고객 is a formal business term for a customer; 손님 is spoken. |
| 방문객 | visitor | 방문객 is a visitor, for example to an event. |
Where Does the Word Come From?
손님 is native Korean: 손, an old word for a visitor, plus the honorific suffix 님. That 손 is a different word from 손, hand.
Arriving at a Restaurant
A server welcomes a customer and asks about the group. 손님 is a customer here, not a visitor to someone’s home.
Server
손님, 몇 분이세요?
Sonnim, myeot buniseyo?
How many people are in your party?
Customer
두 명이에요.
Du myeongieyo.
Two people.
Server
이쪽으로 오세요.
Ijjogeuro oseyo.
Please come this way.
Customer
감사합니다.
Gamsahamnida.
Thank you.
The server uses 분, a respectful counter for people. The customer answers with ordinary 명 for their own party. 손님 identifies the person being addressed; the server does not need to know the customer’s name to use it politely.
Hosting Someone and Serving a Customer
손님을 모시다 means to receive, host or escort a guest respectfully. 모시다 places the guest in a position of respect. Depending on the scene, the practical action may be welcoming someone into a home or guiding a customer to a seat. The phrase is broader than simply owning or managing a shop.
손님을 맞이하다 means to welcome or receive guests. It focuses on their arrival. 손님을 초대하다 means to invite guests, which happens before the visit. These literal collocations help separate three stages of hosting: inviting someone, welcoming them and looking after them during the visit.
손님이 많다 can mean “there are many guests” at home or “there are many customers” in a business. A sentence about a busy restaurant does not imply a private party. The setting supplies the English translation even though the Korean word stays the same.
What Makes Someone a 단골손님?
단골손님 is a regular customer: someone who returns to the same business. The word describes an ongoing relationship, not a first visit or a customer who spends a particular amount. You can hear it in a cafe, restaurant, salon or neighbourhood shop.
단골 can also stand on its own for a regular customer, and 단골 가게 means a shop that someone regularly visits. This helps you follow a conversation about a favourite cafe: the speaker may be describing their repeated visits, rather than the cafe’s quality in general.
Where Will You Hear or See 손님?
In a shop, staff may call 손님 to get your attention, then make a request or offer help. The respectful 님 is already part of the everyday word. You do not need to add another 님 to make 손님 polite. The rest of the sentence carries the appropriate polite ending.
At home, 오늘 손님이 와요 means “we have guests coming today”. The sentence identifies expected visitors; it does not suggest that they will buy anything. A host may use 손님 to explain why they are preparing food or tidying the living room.
고객 appears in business language such as customer notices and service descriptions. It also occurs in spoken customer service, especially as 고객님. The earlier contrast between 손님 and 고객 is a useful starting point, but 고객 is not confined to writing and 손님 is not confined to speech.
방문객 is useful for visitors to a place such as an exhibition, building or event. It focuses on the visit rather than a purchase or a host’s relationship. A visitor can be a customer too, but the two labels tell you different things about why the person matters in the sentence.
People and Roles around a Visit
| Korean | Meaning | One-line note |
|---|---|---|
| 주인 | owner; host | The owner of a place or host in the relevant context. |
| 직원 | employee; staff member | A person serving a customer may be staff, not the owner. |
| 초대 | invitation | Connects a guest with the act of inviting. |
| 단골 | regular customer | Highlights repeated visits to the same business. |
The people and relationships lesson gives you more words for social roles. A person may be a 손님 in one place and a 주인 in another; the label follows the situation rather than being a permanent personal title.
Quick Self-Test
- A server says 손님. Are they necessarily talking to a house guest?
- What does 단골손님 tell you about a customer?
- Why does the server ask 몇 분 while the customer answers 두 명?
Show answers
- No. 손님 also means customer.
- The customer visits the business regularly.
- 분 respectfully counts the guests; 명 is the ordinary counter used for the customer’s own group.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you say "guest" in Korean?
Say 손님 (sonnim).
Does 손님 also mean "customer"?
Yes. Shop staff call customers 손님.
What is a regular customer?
Say 단골손님.
How does 손님 differ from 고객?
고객 is a formal business term; 손님 is spoken.
Related Words and What to Learn Next
- Theme list: people relationships vocabulary groups 손님 with its neighbours.
- Index: Korean words A to Z.
- Practice: add it to the vocabulary flashcard decks.
- A relationship word nearby is lover.