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Korean Direction Words You’ll Hear After Asking “Where Is It?”
Level
A1
Type
Vocab
Theme
Direction
작성자
Y
작성시각
You ask 화장실 어디예요?and the staff member answers in Korean while pointing past the counter. You understood your own question. Now you need one word from the reply.
Listen for the place word:
앞 in front, 뒤 behind, 옆 next to, 위 above, 아래 below, or 건너편 across from. These words usually come after a landmark and before 에 있어요.
Ask where something is
Korean | Pronunciation | Meaning |
화장실 어디예요? | hwa-jang-sil eo-di-ye-yo? | Where is the restroom? |
계산대 어디예요? | gye-san-dae eo-di-ye-yo? | Where is the checkout? |
지하철역 어디예요? | ji-ha-cheol-lyeok eo-di-ye-yo? | Where is the subway station? |
죄송한데, 다시 말씀해 주세요 | joe-song-han-de, da-si mal-sseum-hae ju-se-yo | Sorry, please say that again |
You do not need a longer question. Say the place, add 어디예요?, and listen for the landmark and direction.
The direction words
Korean | Pronunciation | Meaning |
앞 | ap | in front of |
뒤 | dwi | behind |
옆 | yeop | next to |
위 | wi | above / on top of |
아래 | a-rae | below |
안 | an | inside |
밖 | bak | outside |
근처 | geun-cheo | nearby |
사이 | sa-i | between |
왼쪽 | oen-jjok | left side |
오른쪽 | o-reun-jjok | right side |
건너편 | geon-neo-pyeon | across from |
Hear the landmark first
A Korean location answer often follows this shape:
landmark + direction word + 에 있어요
landmark + direction word + 에 있어요
Korean | Pronunciation | Meaning |
계산대 옆에 있어요 | gye-san-dae yeo-pe i-sseo-yo | It's next to the checkout |
엘리베이터 앞에 있어요 | el-li-be-i-teo a-pe i-sseo-yo | It's in front of the elevator |
건물 안에 있어요 | geon-mul a-ne i-sseo-yo | It's inside the building |
길 건너편에 있어요 | gil geon-neo-pyeo-ne i-sseo-yo | It's across the street |
두 가게 사이에 있어요 | du ga-ge sa-i-e i-sseo-yo | It's between the two shops |
When a final consonant meets 에, the sound carries into the next syllable. That is why 앞에 sounds closer to a-pe and 옆에 to yeo-pe. Recognizing those forms is more useful than memorizing the words only in isolation.
Short answers you may hear
Korean | Pronunciation | Meaning |
저쪽이에요 | jeo-jjo-gi-e-yo | It's over there |
이쪽으로 가세요 | i-jjo-geu-ro ga-se-yo | Please go this way |
왼쪽에 있어요 | oen-jjo-ge i-sseo-yo | It's on the left |
2층에 있어요 | i-cheung-e i-sseo-yo | It's on the second floor |
If you catch only 저쪽, follow the gesture. If you hear 옆, find the landmark that came before it. You are not trying to translate the entire answer; you are finding one location.
After your trip, this same pattern becomes your first useful use of
에 있어요: not an abstract grammar rule, but the sentence that helped you find the restroom.