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Open this feature on the website: koreaneasy.com/formality-levels

Overview

Formality Levels shows how Korean verbs change depending on the social context you’re speaking in. All 14 basic consonants are shown with conjugated example verbs across 3 registers.

The 3 registers

RegisterKoreanWhen to use
Casual반말 (banmal)Close friends, younger people, informal settings
Polite요체 (yo-che)Everyday polite speech — the most common register
Formal합쇼체 (hapshyo-che)Professional settings, announcements, formal situations

How to use this page

  1. Choose a consonant row to see its verb examples.
  2. Read across all 3 registers to see how the verb ending changes.
  3. Pay attention to the polite (요체) column first — it’s the register you’ll use most day-to-day.
Start by mastering the polite register before moving to casual or formal speech.

Korean alphabet

Review the consonants used in each conjugation example

Dictionary

Look up any verb you encounter in the formality examples