There are a few ways to say “sorry” in Korean. Just like with past learnings, the way you apologize depends on who you’re speaking to:
to close friends, ppl close to you who are the same age or younger
to ppl you don’t know well, but who look to be a similar age or younger
to anyone else, including formal situations (i.e. to your teacher)
The phrases above are only used to apologize for something that’s your fault. If you friend told you that their relative passed away, you cannot use the phrases above to say “I’m sorry.”
Unless, of course, you had something to do with it.
The above comes from the verbs 미안하다 and 죄송하다, and they have other forms, too. However, the other forms are not often used.
Note that informal refers to situations where you want to be polite (e.g. to people you don’t know well), but you’re not in a formal situation (e.g. giving a speech).
To say “I’m sorry” to someone when you’re trying to give your condolences, use:
They both translate to “Oh no!” or “That’s unfortunate.”
These phrases aren’t usually used in more grave situations, like at a funeral. You can say “유감입니다,” but Koreans generally do not say “I’m sorry” or “Sorry for your loss,” so there’s not really a direct translation for “I’m sorry” when offering condolences.
There are phrases besides “I’m sorry” you can say at a funeral, that are more common in Korea, but we won’t cover them here.
어떡해 and 어떡해요 come from the verb 어떡하다, and they literally mean “What will you (or I) do?”
Conversation Practice
Informal:
보배: 저는 너무 아파요.
다현: 아이고, 안됐네요.
Bobae: I am very sick.
Dahyun: I’m sorry (that’s unfortunate).