If you are a Kpop or Kdrama fan, you have one way or another tried learning Hangeul. Who wouldn’t, when reading subtitles while watching your favorite Kdrama can get tiring at times. And sometimes google translating your favorite Kpop songs can create confusion rather than an understanding of the lyrics. 

For some who are somewhat familiar with the language, there might still be expressions that leave you scratching your head, no matter how you thoroughly scan the pages of your Korean phrasebook or check google for it.

Well, these expressions might just be slang that most people in Korea use, especially the younger ones. As the youth gets playful more and more, slang words are added to the wordlist. 

Here are some expressions to keep you updated. 

1. 잼민이 (jaemini )

 Is a neutral term that initially means “elementary school student”. However, it soon developed its negative sense to describe adolescents who are rude or acting childish. Using the term can be impolite and is mostly used among friends.

To give you an example, let’s say, your friend is in a cue to get cotton candy and she/he’s the only adult in the line. When you find it embarrassing or  funny, you can say “What are you, jaemini?”, “Don’t act like a jaemini!”

   2.  찢었다 (jjit-ut-da)

It originally means torn or ripped. e.g. My shirt is ripped- 내 셔츠를 찢었어. (Nae shirtreul jjijutsseo)

But now it is also used to mean ‘Super Cool’.Or when we say, “You nailed it!”

After his impressive performance of Kim Kyung Ho’s Forbidden love, multimedia star Lee Seunggi said, "A famous singer tore up the stage." 

Lee Seunggi: 진짜 모대를찢어버렸다. (Jinjja modaereul jjijeobeoreotda)

3. 킹받네 (king bat nae)

Is a compound word formed from the English word ‘king’ and the Korean word 열받아 (yeolbada), meaning angry. So when you put them together, you get an expression that means 'very angry'. In English it translates to “I’m pissed off”. 

This expression is very informal and so it is not proper to use when you have to be polite. 

4. 무야호 (moohayo) 

This one is a bit outdated as the whole country has been using it since the start of 2021. It is a simple exclamation, likened to that of “Hurray!”. The word came from a meme of an old TV show-'Infinity Challenge'.

5. 썸 (sseom)

 This is nothing new but is still used by a lot of young people nowadays. The word is taken from the English word “something” like ‘Something is going on’. It’s that part of the relationship when a man and a woman have mutual feelings for each other but are still not into the dating stage yet.

Here’s an old song popularizing the word ‘sseom’.