Work in progress! Native speakers are still checking every phrase. Spot something off? Tell us.
cursing.in curse like a local

Korean · Honorifics Hell

당신

dangsin

dahng-SHEEN · /taŋ.ɕin/

'You' — polite in the dictionary, a challenge in the street.

3/5 Watch your audience

genuinely rude; friends only, never at work

Literally

"you (nominally polite)"

Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.

How to use it

The trap word of Korean textbooks. 당신 is glossed as the polite "you," and it IS — between spouses (where it's tender), in song lyrics, in ad copy addressing no one in particular. But said TO a stranger's face, 당신 is almost always the prelude to a fight: "당신 뭐야?" has the exact energy of "and who the hell are YOU?" It's the "you" of traffic disputes and CCTV arguments. The rule that saves you: never use ANY second-person pronoun to a stranger — title, role, or nothing (see 너). A 3 because learners deploy it in good faith and receive genuine hostility back; the dictionary will not protect you.

Heard in the wild

당신이 뭔데 참견이야?

And who exactly are YOU to butt in?

Where it lands

South Korea (universal); tender between spouses, hostile between strangers

Quick answers

What does "당신" mean?
In Korean, "당신" means "'You' — polite in the dictionary, a challenge in the street.". Literally it's "you (nominally polite)". The trap word of Korean textbooks. 당신 is glossed as the polite "you," and it IS — between spouses (where it's tender), in song lyrics, in ad copy addressing no one in particular. But said TO a stranger's face, 당신 is almost always the prelude to a fight: "당신 뭐야?" has the exact energy of "and who the hell are YOU?" It's the "you" of traffic disputes and CCTV arguments. The rule that saves you: never use ANY second-person pronoun to a stranger — title, role, or nothing (see 너). A 3 because learners deploy it in good faith and receive genuine hostility back; the dictionary will not protect you.
Is "당신" offensive?
It's genuinely rude — a 3/5 (Watch your audience) on the Punch-o-Meter. Fine among friends, never at work or with people you've just met.
How do you pronounce "당신"?
Say it "dahng-SHEEN" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: taŋ.ɕin.

Related in Korean

반말 banmal BAHN-mahl Informal speech itself — in Korean, the register IS the curse. 너 neo nuh 'You' — harmless to a friend, a glove-slap to anyone else. 어디서 반말이야? eodiseo banmariya UH-dee-suh bahn-mahl-ee-YAH Who do you think you're banmal-ing? — the register-violation callout. 아줌마 ajumma ah-JOOM-mah Ma'am — a neutral word that detonates when aimed at the wrong decade. 야! ya yah Hey! — warm between friends, a thrown gauntlet at anyone else. 씨발 ssibal sshee-BAHL Fuck / fucking hell — the load-bearing Korean curse.

Reviewed by native speakers. Rate it differently? Tell us what we got wrong.