Whenever you are in a foreign country, there will be times when you need help. Whether you are being attacked by a bear, or simply want directions to the nearest internet café, being able to ask for help is an absolutely vital thing to learn.

This article will show you how to say ‘help me’ in Korean. Learn this important phrase to be sure you’ll have a fantastic time in Korea!

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‘Help Me’ in Korean

 

To help

The verb ‘to help’ in Korean is 돕다 (dopda).

When asking for help, this verb is usually combined with the verb 주다 (juda) which means ‘to give’. The resulting combination of these two verbs is 도와 주다 (dowa juda). Most of this article’s phrases and expressions are based on 도와 주다.

If your life is in danger, then instead of saying ‘help me’, another verb you can use is 살려 주다. It means ‘save me’ or ‘rescue me’.

 

Formal ‘Help Me’ in Korean

1. 도와 주시겠습니다 (dowa jusigesssumnida)

You can use formal Korean in situations such as reports, presentations, and interviews.

It is possible to say 도와 줍니다 (dowa jumnida), but 도와 주시갰습니다 is more common and politer.

Example:

세상을 변화시키도록 도와 주시겠습니다 (sesangeul byeonhwashikidorok dowa jushigesssumnida)

Help me change the world.

 

Standard ‘Help Me’ in Korean

 

1. 도와 주시겠어요 (dowa jushigesseoyo)

2. 도와 주세요 (dowa juseyo)

3. 도와 주실래요 (dowa jushillaeyo)

Standard Korean is used when speaking to people who you don’t know well or who are older than you.

You can use either of the above phrases to say ‘help me’ in Korean, but 도와 주시겠어요 is a bit more polite than 도와 주세요. You can also use 도와 줄래요 (dowa jullaeyo) but this is considered slightly less formal. It can be made a bit more polite by adding 시 (shi) so that it becomes 도와 주실래요 (dowa jushillaeyo).

Example:

아저씨, 실례합니다, 좀 도와 주시겠어요.

(ajosshi, sillyehamnida, jom dowa jushigesseoyo)

Excuse me sir, could you help me please.

이 문제가 이해가 잘 안 되는데요, 좀 도와 주실래요?

(I munjega ihaega jal an doeneundeyo, jom dowa jushillaeyo?)

I don’t understand this problem, could you help me?

 

Informal ‘Help Me’ in Korean

 

1. 도와 (dowa)

2. 도와 줘 (dowa jwo)

You can use these expressions with people who are close to you and who are of a similar or younger age.

Example:

나를 도와 줘 (nareul dowa jwo)

Help me

누구 없어, 도와 줘 (nugu eopseo, dowa jwo)

Somebody, help me

A Word of Caution About Romanization

Although the phrases in this article use Romanization to make your studying easier, learning the Korean alphabet (Hangeul) is very easy and will benefit you in the long term. If you start learning Hangeul today then you will see the benefits right away.

Being able to read Korean allows you to identify word and grammar patterns as well as improve your pronunciation. It only takes a few hours to learn Hangeul, and after you can read Hangeul, your learning speed will increase dramatically.

If you are serious about learning Korean, why don’t you take a look at our free list of Korean phrases or our full Korean course for all the help you will need when studying Korean.

 

Now that you know how to say ‘Help me’ in Korean, life in Korea should be much easier. Let us know when you have needed to ask for help in Korea.

 

*Want more Korean phrases? Go to our Korean Phrases Page for a complete list!