How do you say emotions in Korean?

행복하다 happy, 슬프다 sad, 화나다 angry, 무섭다 scared, 피곤하다 tired, 신나다 excited. Most are adjectives that conjugate like verbs; the full list with romanization is above.

How do you ask “how are you feeling?” in Korean?

기분이 어때요? (gibun-i eottae-yo?) — literally “how is your mood?”. To answer: 기분이 좋아요 (I feel good) or 기분이 안 좋아요 (I don’t feel good).

Why do 기쁘다 and 슬프다 become 기뻐요 and 슬퍼요?

They are ㅡ-irregular: the final ㅡ drops before the 어/아 ending, so 기쁘다 → 기뻐요 and 슬프다 → 슬퍼요. The same happens with 아프다 → 아파요.

Korean Emotion WordsFeelings & emotion words with romanization — free list

To describe how you feel in Korean, you mostly use feeling adjectives like 기쁘다 (to be happy), 슬프다 (to be sad) and 화나다 (to be angry). This free list covers the most common emotions with romanization and meaning, plus the noun 기분 (mood) you use to ask how someone feels.

Korean	Romanization	Meaning
기분	gibun	mood / feeling
감정	gamjeong	emotion
행복하다	haengbokada	to be happy
기쁘다	gippeuda	to be glad / happy
슬프다	seulpeuda	to be sad
화나다	hwanada	to be / get angry
무섭다	museopda	to be scared / scary
즐겁다	jeulgeopda	to be joyful / enjoyable
신나다	sinnada	to be excited
외롭다	oeropda	to be lonely
심심하다	simsimhada	to be bored
피곤하다	pigonhada	to be tired
놀라다	nollada	to be surprised
걱정하다	geokjeonghada	to worry
부끄럽다	bukkeureopda	to be shy / embarrassed
긴장하다	ginjanghada	to be nervous
사랑하다	saranghada	to love
좋아하다	joahada	to like
싫어하다	sireohada	to dislike
기대하다	gidaehada	to look forward to / expect
답답하다	dapdapada	to feel frustrated / stifled
우울하다	uulhada	to be depressed / down
그립다	geuripda	to miss / long for
편하다	pyeonhada	to be comfortable / at ease

💡 Good to know

Ask about feelings with 기분 (mood): 기분이 어때요? (“how do you feel?”). Many emotion adjectives end in 프다 and are ㅡ-irregular — 기쁘다 → 기뻐요, 슬프다 → 슬퍼요, 아프다 → 아파요. To say you feel an emotion, use 가/이: 기분이 좋아요 (I feel good).

Lesson: Talking about feelings →Lesson: Worries & comfort →

FAQ

How do you say emotions in Korean?: 행복하다 happy, 슬프다 sad, 화나다 angry, 무섭다 scared, 피곤하다 tired, 신나다 excited. Most are adjectives that conjugate like verbs; the full list with romanization is above.
How do you ask “how are you feeling?” in Korean?: 기분이 어때요? (gibun-i eottae-yo?) — literally “how is your mood?”. To answer: 기분이 좋아요 (I feel good) or 기분이 안 좋아요 (I don’t feel good).
Why do 기쁘다 and 슬프다 become 기뻐요 and 슬퍼요?: They are ㅡ-irregular: the final ㅡ drops before the 어/아 ending, so 기쁘다 → 기뻐요 and 슬프다 → 슬퍼요. The same happens with 아프다 → 아파요.

Written by Alvin Lim Certified Korean Language Teacher (Level 2)