16/07/2020
Level 1: lesson 1: Hello, thank you.
Part 3:
감사합니다.
Thank you.
감사 [gam-sa] + 합니다 [ham-ni-da] = 감사합니다. [gam-sa-ham-ni-da]
감사 = appreciation, thankfulness, gratitude
합니다 = I do, I am doing
감사합니다 is the most common way to politely say “Thank you.” 감사 means “gratitude”, and 합니다 means “I do” or “I am doing” in 존댓말 (polite/formal language). Together, the two mean “Thank you.” You can use 감사합니다 whenever you find yourself in a situation where you want to say “Thank you.”
In English, when you say “Thank you”, the expression has the word “you” in it. In Korean, however, people just say 감사합니다, but the word does not have an object (“you”) in it. You do not have to say “you” in Korean because it is easy to guess to whom you are offering thanks. As you learn more Korean expressions, you will see that there are many that need not include the object within the sentence.
If you have a Korean friend or live in Korea but have not tried using these expressions, try to use them as often as possible until they become very easy and comfortable to say!
Credits:
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