Key Facts
- Hangul: 우편번호; Revised Romanization: upyeonbeonho
- Part of speech: noun
- Origin: Sino-Korean, hanja 郵便番號 (郵 mail + 便 convenience + 番 number + 號 number)
- Register: Neutral, everyday word used in both spoken and written Korean. Korean postal codes are five digits.
Postal Code in Korean: What Does 우편번호 Mean?
우편번호 is both "postal code" and "zip code". It is a neutral everyday word. Korean postal codes are five digits long, which is why the phrase 다섯 자리 우편번호 (five-digit postal code) exists. On websites and forms you will enter it with 우편번호를 입력하다, or look it up with 우편번호 검색.
How Do You Pronounce 우편번호?
Four syllables: u-pyeon-beon-ho. Read them as written. The last syllable 호 begins with ㅎ, written h in Revised Romanization, so it is ho. The eo vowel in pyeon and beon is the open mid-vowel, like the u in "sun".
Example Sentences with 우편번호
우편번호가 뭐예요?
Upyeonbeonhoga mwoyeyo?
What is the postal code?
A direct question for the number. 뭐예요 is the polite "what is it?" and takes the subject particle on 우편번호.
우편번호를 써 주세요.
Upyeonbeonhoreul sseo juseyo.
Please write the postal code.
써 주세요 means "please write". Staff at a counter might say this to ask you to fill in a form field.
우편번호를 몰라서 검색했어요.
Upyeonbeonhoreul mollaseo geomsaekaesseoyo.
I didn't know the postal code, so I looked it up.
몰라서 gives the reason ("because I did not know"), and 검색했어요 means "searched". The sentence tells a short story in one line.
Common Phrases and Collocations
Mail and online-form tasks use these three phrases.
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 우편번호를 입력하다 | to enter the postal code |
| 우편번호 검색 | postal code search |
| 다섯 자리 우편번호 | five-digit postal code |
The Mistake to Avoid
Two words both begin with 우 and sit near each other on a post office sign.
Wrong: Confusing 우편번호 with 우표.
Correct: 우편번호 is the postal code; 우표 is the stamp.
If you ask for a 우표 you will get a stamp, not a code.
우편번호 Compared with 주소 and 우편
Postal code is the numeric part of a larger system of mail words.
| Word | Meaning | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| 주소 | address | The full address; 우편번호 is only the number code. |
| 우편 | The mail system or letters, and the first half of this compound. |
Where Does the Word Come From?
우편번호 is written 郵便番號 in hanja: 郵 (mail), 便 (convenience), 番 (number) and 號 (number). So the compound reads as the "mail number", matching how it is used.
Filling in a Delivery Form
A customer is sending a parcel at the post office. The clerk notices an empty postal-code box, and the customer asks whether the street address is enough.
Clerk
우편번호도 써 주세요.
Upyeonbeonhodo sseo juseyo.
Please write the postal code too.
Customer
주소만 쓰면 안 돼요?
Jusoman sseumyeon an dwaeyo?
Is writing just the address not enough?
Clerk
우편번호가 필요해요.
Upyeonbeonhoga piryohaeyo.
We need the postal code.
Customer
잠깐만요. 검색해 볼게요.
Jamkkanmanyo. Geomsaekae bolgeyo.
Just a moment. I’ll look it up.
도 in 우편번호도 means “also” or “too”: the clerk needs the code in addition to the address. 만 in 주소만 means “only”. These small endings explain the problem before you understand the whole exchange. The customer’s final line offers to search, rather than asking the clerk to guess the missing number.
What Do Postal-Code Buttons and Boxes Mean?
우편번호 검색 is a label for finding the code, while 우편번호 입력 asks you to enter it. 검색 names a search; 입력 names data entry. Recognizing that difference helps on a shopping checkout page: a search button may open an address finder instead of a box where you type a number directly.
주소 검색 means “address search”. You may search for the address first and then see its postal code among the results. A separate 상세주소 field means “detailed address”, where details such as an apartment number belong. The postal code identifies a delivery area; it does not replace those details or identify a particular resident.
A form label is usually a bare noun phrase. It may simply say 우편번호 with no verb or politeness ending. At a counter, staff turn that label into a request such as the existing example 우편번호를 써 주세요. The noun itself is neither polite nor rude; the sentence ending makes the request polite.
Which Number Are You Being Asked For?
번호 means “number”, but the first part of the compound tells you which number. 우편번호 is a postal code, 전화번호 is a telephone number, and 주문번호 is an order number. Seeing 번호 alone in a long form is a reason to read the whole label before copying a number from your phone.
In 다섯 자리 우편번호, 자리 counts digit positions. The phrase means a code with five digits, not five separate codes. A zero at the beginning still occupies one position. Copy a postal code as a code rather than shortening it as you might shorten an ordinary number in a calculation.
우편번호를 입력하다 describes typing the code into a field; 우편번호를 쓰다 describes writing it. Both keep 우편번호 as the object. The 를 ending follows the vowel at the end of 호. In the question 우편번호가 뭐예요?, 가 marks the code as the thing being asked about.
Address Words to Learn Together
| Korean | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 주소 | address | Gives the destination in words, beyond the code. |
| 상세주소 | detailed address | Adds apartment, floor or other delivery details. |
| 받는 사람 | recipient | Names the person receiving the item. |
| 보내는 사람 | sender | Names the person sending it. |
| 우표 | postage stamp | Pays postage; it is not part of the address. |
The post office vocabulary lesson groups the people, objects and actions needed for mailing. On a parcel form, check whether an address belongs to the sender or recipient before filling its postal-code box.
Quick Self-Test
- Which label means “search”: 우편번호 검색 or 우편번호 입력?
- Does a postal code replace the apartment number in 상세주소?
- What does 자리 count in 다섯 자리 우편번호?
Show answers
- 우편번호 검색. 입력 means entry or input.
- No. The detailed address supplies information the postal code does not.
- Digit positions: the code has five digits.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you say "postal code" in Korean?
Say 우편번호 (upyeonbeonho). The same word is used for a zip code.
How long is a Korean postal code?
It is five digits long. The phrase is 다섯 자리 우편번호.
How do you ask for the postal code?
Say 우편번호가 뭐예요?, or ask someone to write it with 우편번호를 써 주세요.
What is the difference between 우편번호 and 주소?
주소 is the full address. 우편번호 is only the numeric code that goes with it.
Related Words and What to Learn Next
- The post office vocabulary page groups it with other mail words.
- Find more mail and city words in Korean words A to Z.
- Add the code to your vocabulary flashcard decks with its stamp look-alike for contrast.
- The page for address covers the full address that contains this code.
- Check the look-alike on the stamp page.