Advanced Korean Honorifics: 압존법, 간접높임, -기에 앞서
Advanced Korean honorifics open a meeting with -기에 앞서 (회의를 시작하기에 앞서 한 말씀 드리겠습니다 — before we begin the meeting, let me say a word), honor a superior's attribute indirectly with 간접높임 (사장님은 따님이 있으세요 — the president has a daughter), and fix over-honorific service errors (커피 나오셨습니다 ✗ → 커피 나왔습니다 ○).
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Written by Alvin Lim Certified Korean Language Teacher (Level 2)
Advanced Korean honorifics are less about new grammar than about operating the system precisely: -기에 앞서 opens a formal moment (회의를 시작하기에 앞서 한 말씀 드리겠습니다 — before we begin, let me say a word), 간접높임 honors a superior through their attribute with -으시- (사장님 말씀이 있으시겠습니다 — the president will say a few words), and you learn to undo over-honorifics like the infamous 커피 나오셨습니다 ✗ → 커피 나왔습니다 ○. Grade 5 is where you stop just adding -요 and start handling rank like a Korean professional.
You already know the basic honorific -으시- and humble 드리다/말씀. This lesson is the operating manual: who gets honored when several ranks are in the room (압존법), how to honor someone through their things (간접높임), and how to spot the over-polite errors Koreans themselves debate. It sits right after the workplace small-talk lesson — same office, higher stakes. Start with the vocabulary of rank and respect.
Ten words for the honorific workplace
These are the titles, verbs, and respect words you’ll deploy below.
Before we begin — -기에 앞서
The one new connector here opens a formal moment. Attach -기에 앞서(서) to a verb stem for “prior to / before (doing)” — the polished way to start a speech, meeting, or report.
회의를 시작하기에 앞서 한 말씀 드리겠습니다 = before we begin the meeting, let me say a word 발표를 하기에 앞서 자료를 나눠 드리겠습니다 = before presenting, I’ll hand out the materials 본론에 들어가기에 앞서 일정을 안내드릴게요 = before getting to the main point, let me go over the schedule 결정을 내리기에 앞서 신중히 검토했습니다 = before reaching a decision, we reviewed it carefully
It’s more formal than 전에 (“before”) and lives in written and ceremonial Korean. Everything else in this lesson is not new grammar but the operation of honorifics — let’s run the system.
Who gets honored — 압존법 (and how it’s relaxed today)
When several ranks share the room, traditional 압존법 lowers the middle person before someone higher. Speaking to your 할아버지 about your 아버지, you drop the honorific — because 아버지 ranks below 할아버지.
(to 할아버지) 아버지가 아직 안 왔습니다 = Father hasn’t come yet (no -으시- before grandfather) (to 사장님) 김 부장이 곧 온다고 합니다 = Manager Kim says he’ll be here soon (traditional) ✗ (to 할아버지) 아버지가 안 오셨습니다 = over-honoring the middle person, traditionally avoided modern office: 부장님께서 곧 오신다고 합니다 = increasingly accepted today
Here’s the catch most textbooks miss: modern Korean workplaces have largely relaxed 압존법. The National Institute of Korean Language now accepts honoring your 부장님 even in front of the 사장님. Family 압존법 toward grandparents lingers, but at the office, honoring each superior individually is the safer modern default.
Honoring through their things — 간접높임
To honor a person via their attribute — words, body, family, possessions — attach -으시- to that thing’s verb, not to the person. This is 간접높임 (indirect honorification).
사장님 말씀이 있으시겠습니다 = the president will say a few words (honoring 사장님 via 말씀) 부장님은 따님이 있으세요 = the manager has a daughter 선생님은 시간이 있으세요? = does the teacher have time? 할아버지는 귀가 잘 안 들리세요 = Grandfather can’t hear well
Watch the trap: a person you honor directly takes 계시다 (사장님이 계세요 = the president is here), but their attribute takes -으시- on the plain verb (말씀이 있으세요, never 말씀이 계세요). You honor the daughter or the words only to reach the person behind them.
Don’t over-honor objects — 과잉존대 correction
The flip side of indirect honorification is over-doing it. -으시- honors people, never objects — so putting it on a coffee, a drink, or a size is 과잉존대 (over-honorification), the error Koreans hear (and groan at) every day in cafes.
✗ 커피 나오셨습니다 → ○ 커피 나왔습니다 = your coffee is out ✗ 주문하신 음료 나오셨습니다 → ○ 나왔습니다 = your drink is ready ✗ 그 사이즈는 없으십니다 → ○ 없습니다 = we don’t have that size ○ 손님, 주문 도와드리겠습니다 = sir/ma’am, I’ll help you order (honor the person — correct)
The rule is one line: people get -으시-, things don’t. Honor the 손님 (주문하신, 도와드리다), not the latte. Spot-and-fix 사물 존칭 (object-honorifics) and your Korean instantly sounds more native than half the service counters in Seoul.
Opening a meeting, the right way
A team lead opens a meeting and introduces the president — every move from this lesson, live:
Watch the system run: 시작하기에 앞서 opens formally, 말씀이 있으시겠습니다 honors the president indirectly, 계세요/와 계십니다 honor him directly, and 커피 나오셨습니다 → 나왔습니다 fixes the classic over-honorific. That’s honorifics handled like a pro.
FAQ
What is 압존법, and do people still use it at work? 압존법 (pressed-honorific) is the rule that you lower a middle-ranking person when speaking to someone even higher. Traditionally, telling your 할아버지 about your 아버지, you’d drop the honorific: 할아버지, 아버지가 아직 안 왔습니다 (not 오셨습니다), because 아버지 is lower than 할아버지. The same once applied at work: telling the 사장님 about your 부장님, you’d say 부장님이 보고했습니다 without -으시-. In practice, modern Korean workplaces have largely relaxed this — the National Institute of Korean Language now accepts honoring your 부장님 even in front of the 사장님 (부장님께서 보고하셨습니다), and many companies prefer it. Family 압존법 toward grandparents still lingers, but at the office, when unsure, honoring each superior individually is the safer modern default.
When do I put -으시- on a thing instead of a person? (간접높임) 간접높임 (indirect honorification) honors a person by attaching -으시- to something that belongs to or is part of them — their words, body, family, or possessions — rather than to the person directly. 사장님 말씀이 있으시겠습니다 = the president will say a few words (honoring 사장님 via 말씀); 부장님은 따님이 있으세요 = the manager has a daughter; 선생님은 시간이 있으세요? = does the teacher have time? You’re not honoring the 말씀 or 따님 for their own sake — you’re honoring the person through them. Careful: a person you honor directly takes 계시다 (사장님이 계세요 = the president is here), but their attribute takes -으시- on the plain verb (말씀이 있으세요, never 말씀이 계세요).
Why is 커피 나오셨습니다 wrong, and where does this error come from? Because 커피 is an object, and -으시- (here 나오셨- ) only honors people. 커피 나오셨습니다 literally puts the coffee on an honorific pedestal — grammatically it’s 과잉존대 (over-honorification). The correct form is the plain 커피 나왔습니다 = your coffee is out / here. The same goes for 주문하신 음료 나오셨습니다 ✗ → 나왔습니다 ○, and 사이즈가 없으십니다 ✗ → 없습니다 ○. This pattern is so common in Korean cafes and shops that it has a nickname, 사물 존칭 (object-honorifics); it spread as overly polite service language. You honor the customer (손님, 주문하신), not the drink. When in doubt: people get -으시-, things don’t.
Next: negotiation — -는 이상, -을지라도, -으면 몰라도. Previous: work-life balance — 따라, -게 생겼다, -고는 하다. Full path: curriculum hub.