Introduce yourself in Korean

Give your listener a starting point

저는 is a polite way to introduce yourself as the topic of a sentence. You can think of it as “As for me,” although natural English often just uses “I.” 저는 민수예요 means “I am Minsu.” Korean does not need a separate word placed before the name to match the English verb “am”; the ending after the name does that work.

Look at the final sound

Use 이에요 after a name or noun that ends in a consonant, and 예요 after one that ends in a vowel. 학생 ends with a consonant, so 저는 학생이에요 means “I am a student.” 민수 ends with a vowel, so 저는 민수예요 fits. When using your own name, first decide how you are writing and pronouncing it in Korean. The spelling in English alone is not the test.

Invite the other person to talk

이름이 뭐예요? asks “What is your name?” 만나서 반가워요 means “Nice to meet you.” These polite conversational phrases are useful with a new classmate. With someone much older or in a formal setting, a more respectful version of the question may be preferable. You can start by offering your own name instead of leading with a question.

Share only what you want to share

어디에서 왔어요? asks where someone came from. 저는 미국에서 왔어요 means “I came from the United States.” You can change 미국 to a different place, but you do not need to share personal information to practice the sentence. Use a fictional character if that is more comfortable. Haru does not require your real name, school, or location.

Build a short introduction

Try three sentences: a polite hello, your name, and “Nice to meet you.” Pause between them instead of racing to sound fluent. Next, introduce yourself as a student with 학생이에요. Comparing 민수예요 and 학생이에요 helps you notice the ending change in a practical context. Return to the sentence remix game when you want to build the pattern from tiles.

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