“Do you have a moment” in Korean: 잠깐 시간 괜찮으세요?

잠깐 시간 괜찮으세요?

jamkkan sigan gwaenchaneuseyo?

Situation: Work, school & formalLevel: Beginner (TOPIK 1–2)

Meaning

Do you have a moment? (polite)

-(으)세요 is the honorific ending that raises the listener. 잠깐 means “for a moment.” A polite way to open a conversation with a boss or teacher.

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

Syllables: 9 · Words: 3

Said aloud, it sounds like [잠깐 시간 괜차느세요].

Syllable	Letters (consonant + vowel + final)	Romanization
잠깐
잠	ㅈ+ㅏ+ㅁ	jam
깐	ㄲ+ㅏ+ㄴ	kkan
시간
시	ㅅ+ㅣ	si
간	ㄱ+ㅏ+ㄴ	gan
괜찮으세요
괜	ㄱ+ㅙ+ㄴ	gwaen
찮	ㅊ+ㅏ+ㄶ	[차] cha
으	ㅇ+ㅡ	[느] neu
세	ㅅ+ㅔ	se
요	ㅇ+ㅛ	yo

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

Silent ㅎ: a final ㅎ (including the ㅎ inside ㄶ and ㅀ) is not pronounced before a vowel. 찮으 → [차느]

Style: Polite (해요체)Sentence type: Question

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

It contains the honorific -(으)시-, which shows respect to the person being talked about or talked to.

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Question 1 What does “잠깐 시간 괜찮으세요?” mean?

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Answer: Do you have a moment? (polite)

Question 2 How do you say “Do you have a moment? (polite)” in Korean?

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Answer: 잠깐 시간 괜찮으세요? jamkkan sigan gwaenchaneuseyo?

Question 3 How is “잠깐 시간 괜찮으세요?” pronounced?

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Answer: [잠깐 시간 괜차느세요]

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