How to say “Excuse me” in Korean

실례합니다

sillyehamnida

Said as 실례함니다

Phrase #8 of the top 100 · Hello & manners

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How to read it

Korean letters stack into blocks — one block is one syllable. Tap a block to hear it and see its letters.

ㅅ“s”consonant
+
ㅣ“i”vowel
+
ㄹ“l”end consonant
↓
실“sil”block

Sounds different than it looks

Letters change sound next to each other. Read it as 실례함니다.

Looks like실례but say실례

Two ㄹ in a row make a clear 'l' sound, not 'r'.

Looks like합니다but say함니다

The final ㅂ before ㄴ turns into ㅁ, so -ㅂ니다 always sounds like -ㅁ니다.

Tip: Hold the l: sil-lye; ㅖ after a consonant often sounds like ㅔ.

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