How to Say “I’m hungry” in Korean: 배고파요 (baegopayo)

배고파요

baegopayo

Situation: Café & daily lifeLevel: Starter (just learning Hangul)

Meaning

I’m hungry.

배 is “belly” and 고프다 means “hungry” (literally “empty”). Learn the opposite 배불러요 (“I’m full”) too.

Romanization follows the Revised Romanization system and is a guide to pronunciation.

Syllables: 4 · Words: 1

It is pronounced just as it is written.

Syllable	Letters (consonant + vowel + final)	Romanization
배	ㅂ+ㅐ	bae
고	ㄱ+ㅗ	go
파	ㅍ+ㅏ	pa
요	ㅇ+ㅛ	yo

A ㅇ at the start of a syllable is silent; at the end of a syllable it sounds like “ng”.

Style: Polite (해요체)Sentence type: Statement or set phrase

Ends in -요. The everyday polite style, and a safe choice with shop staff, colleagues, strangers and anyone older than you.

Test yourself before you move on. Tap an answer.

Question 1 What does “배고파요” mean?

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Answer: I’m hungry

Question 2 How do you say “I’m hungry” in Korean?

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Answer: 배고파요 baegopayo

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