Variety Shows Korean — 60 Expressions Explained
60 Korean expressions you'll hear in variety shows, explained with romanization, English meaning and cultural context. Tap any phrase in the app to hear the audio and practice with quizzes.
K-content like variety shows is full of natural Korean you won't find in a textbook. These 60 example sentences are written in that same style for learners, with romanization, English meaning and cultural context (A2–B2). Examples include “런닝맨 시작합니다” and “유재석 형, 빨리 와요”. These 60 phrases are graded A2 20 · B1 20 · B2 20 on the CEFR scale and run from 6 to 32 characters.
| Korean | Meaning (EN) |
|---|---|
| 런닝맨 시작합니다!reonningmaen sijakhamnida! | Running Man, let's begin! |
| 유재석 형, 빨리 와요!yujaeseok hyeong, ppalli wayo! | Brother Yoo Jae-suk, come quickly! |
| 이름표를 떼세요!ireumpyoreul ttesseyo! | Tear off the name tag! |
| 오늘 미션은 뭐예요?oneul misyeoneun mwoyeyo? | What's today's mission? |
| 와, 진짜 웃겨요!wa, jinjja utgyeoyo! | Wow, that's really funny! |
| 혼자 사는 게 편해요.honja saneun ge pyeonhaeyo | Living alone is comfortable. |
| 오늘 메뉴는 김치찌개입니다.oneul menyuneun gimchijjigaeimnida | Today's menu is kimchi stew. |
| 다 같이 외쳐요, 무도!da gachi oechyeoyo, mudo! | Everyone, shout together — Mu-Do! |
| 복불복 게임 시작!bokbulbok geim sijak! | Luck-of-the-draw game, start! |
| 이수근, 지금 어디 가?isugeun, jigeum eodi ga? | Lee Soo-geun, where are you going right now? |
| 벌칙 당첨입니다!beolchik dangcheomimnida! | You got the penalty! |
| 팀을 나눠 볼까요?timeul nanwo bolkkayo? | Shall we split into teams? |
| 저 표정 좀 보세요!jeo pyojeong jom boseyo! | Look at that face! |
| 제가 먼저 할게요!jega meonjeo halgeyo! | I will go first! |
| 물벼락 조심하세요!mulbyeorak josimhaseyo! | Careful, the water is coming! |
| 야외라서 너무 춥네요!yaoeraseo neomu chumneyo! | It is freezing out here! |
| 우리 팀이 이겼어요!uri timi igyeosseoyo! | Our team won! |
| 아, 아깝다!a, akkapda! | Aw, so close! |
| 라면 냄새가 여기까지 나요.ramyeon naemsaega yeogikkaji nayo. | I can smell the ramyeon all the way over here. |
| 제작진이 웃었어요!jejakjini useosseoyo! | Even the crew laughed! |
| 오늘은 게스트로 손흥민 선수가 출연합니다.oneureun geseuteuro sonheungmin seonsuga churyeonhamnida | Today, footballer Son Heung-min appears as our guest. |
| 이번 미션은 시간 안에 미션을 완수하는 거예요.ibeon misyeoneun sigan ane misyeoneul wansuhaneun geoyeyo | This mission is to complete the task within the time limit. |
| 혼자 사는 사람들은 식비를 어떻게 관리해요?honja saneun saramdeureun sikbireul eotteoke gwallihaeyo? | How do people who live alone manage food expenses? |
| 지금부터 30분 동안 자유 시간을 드립니다.jigeumbuteo 30 bun dongan jayu siganeul deurimnida | From now, you have 30 minutes of free time. |
| 역시 베테랑 MC답네요.yeoksi beteran MC damneyo | As expected from a veteran MC. |
| 이수근의 잔머리에 또 당했네요.isugeun-ui janmeorie tto danghatneyo | We got tricked by Lee Soo-geun's cunning again. |
| 오늘 콘셉트는 '집순이 라이프'예요.oneul konseopteuneun 'jipsuni raipeu' yeyo | Today's concept is 'homebody girl life'. |
| 이 게임은 팀워크가 정말 중요해요.i geimeun timwokeuga jeongmal jungyohaeyo | Teamwork is really important in this game. |
| 여기서 포기하시면 안 되죠!yeogiseo pogihasimyeon an doejyo! | You can't give up here! |
| 이 음식 진짜 인생 맛집이에요.i eumsik jinjja insaeng matjibieyo | This food is from a once-in-a-lifetime eatery. |
| 게스트가 직접 문제를 준비해 오셨대요.geseuteuga jikjeop munjereul junbihae osyeotdaeyo. | They say the guest prepared the quiz questions in person. |
| 이 정도면 거의 반칙 아니에요?i jeongdomyeon geoui banchik anieyo? | At this point that is almost cheating, is it not? |
| 카메라 앞이라 다들 긴장했나 봐요.kamera apira dadeul ginjanghaenna bwayo. | Everyone seems tense with the camera rolling. |
| 비가 와서 촬영이 잠시 멈췄어요.biga waseo chwaryeongi jamsi meomchwosseoyo. | The shoot paused for a while because of the rain. |
| 둘이 티격태격하는 게 관전 포인트예요.duri tigyeoktaegyeokaneun ge gwanjeon pointeuyeyo. | The bickering between those two is the best part to watch. |
| 자막 보고 빵 터졌어요.jamak bogo ppang teojyeosseoyo. | The caption made me burst out laughing. |
| 진 팀은 설거지 담당입니다.jin timeun seolgeoji damdangimnida. | The losing team is on dish duty. |
| 여기서 한 명 탈락입니다.yeogiseo han myeong tallagimnida. | One person is eliminated at this stage. |
| 자, 다음 코너로 넘어가 보겠습니다.ja, daeum koneoro neomeoga bogetseumnida. | All right, let us move on to the next segment. |
| 결국 시간 안에 성공하지 못했습니다.gyeolguk sigan ane seonggonghaji motaetseumnida. | In the end they did not pull it off within the time limit. |
| 이번 미션은 출연진의 케미를 시험하는 코너입니다.ibeon misyeoneun churyeonjin-ui kemireul siheomhaneun konyeoimnida | This mission is a corner that tests the cast's chemistry. |
| 유재석 MC의 진행 능력은 가히 국보급이라고 할 수 있죠.yujaeseok MC-ui jinhaeng neungnyeogeun gahi gukbogeubirago hal su itjyo | Yoo Jae-suk's hosting ability can fairly be called national-treasure level. |
| 이 코너는 출연자의 인간적인 면모를 끌어내는 게 매력이에요.i konyeoneun churyeonja-ui inganjeogin myeonmoreul kkeureonaeneun ge maeryeogieyo | The charm of this segment is drawing out the cast's human side. |
| 복불복으로 잠자리가 결정되는 이 시스템이 1박2일의 묘미죠.bokbulboguro jamjariga gyeoljeongdoeneun i siseutemi 1bak2il-ui myomijyo | This system where sleeping arrangements are decided by chance is the charm of '2 Days & 1 Night'. |
| MZ세대의 공감을 사면서 시청률도 함께 잡았습니다.MZ sedae-ui gonggameul samyeonseo sicheongnyuldo hamkke jabatseumnida | It captured both the MZ generation's empathy and the ratings at the same time. |
| 이 방송은 한국 예능사에 한 획을 그었다고 평가받습니다.i bangsongeun hanguk yeneungsae han hoegeul geueotdago pyeonggabatseumnida | This show is regarded as having drawn a defining line in Korean variety-show history. |
| 방송 분량을 위해 일부러 자극적인 멘트를 던지기도 합니다.bangsong bullyangeul wihae ilbureo jageukjeogin menteureul deonjigido hamnida | Sometimes they deliberately throw provocative comments for the sake of airtime. |
| 출연자 간 갈등 구도가 시청자 몰입을 유도합니다.churyeonja gan galdeung gudoga sicheongja molibeul yudohamnida | The conflict structure between cast members induces viewer immersion. |
| 이수근 특유의 너스레가 분위기를 띄웁니다.isugeun teugyu-ui neoseurega bunwigireul ttiumnida | Lee Soo-geun's signature good-humored banter lifts the mood. |
| 이 프로그램은 매주 신선한 포맷을 선보입니다.i peurogeuraemeun maeju sinseonhan pomaeseul seonboimnida | This program presents a fresh format every week. |
| 리얼리티 예능도 결국 편집이 만들어 낸 흐름입니다.rieolliti yeneungdo gyeolguk pyeonjibi mandeureo naen heureumimnida. | Even in reality variety, the flow is ultimately built in the edit. |
| 자막 한 줄이 장면의 해석을 바꿔 놓습니다.jamak han juri jangmyeonui haeseogeul bakkwo noseumnida. | A single line of on-screen text can change how a scene reads. |
| 벌칙 수위는 웃음과 불편함 사이에서 조율됩니다.beolchik suwineun useumgwa bulpyeonham saieseo joyuldoemnida. | The severity of a penalty is tuned between comedy and discomfort. |
| 관찰 예능은 사생활과 연출의 경계를 오갑니다.gwanchal yeneungeun sasaenghwalgwa yeonchurui gyeonggyereul ogamnida. | Observational shows move back and forth between private life and staging. |
| 게스트 섭외는 화제성과 어울림을 함께 따집니다.geseuteu seoboeneun hwajeseonggwa eoullimeul hamkke ttajimnida. | Guest casting weighs buzz and chemistry at the same time. |
| 야외 촬영은 날씨가 대본을 대신하기도 합니다.yaoe chwaryeongeun nalssiga daeboneul daesinhagido hamnida. | On location shoots, the weather sometimes writes the script. |
| 효과음과 그래픽이 장면의 리듬을 만듭니다.hyogwaeumgwa geuraepigi jangmyeonui rideumeul mandeumnida. | Sound effects and graphics set the rhythm of a scene. |
| 오래 사랑받는 예능은 출연진의 성장 서사를 품습니다.orae sarangbanneun yeneungeun churyeonjinui seongjang seosareul pumseumnida. | Shows that stay loved for years hold a story of the cast growing up. |
| 시청자 반응은 다음 회차 구성에 곧바로 반영됩니다.sicheongja baneungeun daeum hoecha guseonge gotbaro banyeongdoemnida. | Viewer reactions feed straight into how the next episode is put together. |
| 현장 스태프가 화면에 잡히면 오히려 현장감이 살아납니다.hyeonjang seutaepeuga hwamyeone japimyeon ohiryeo hyeonjanggami saranamnida. | When the crew slips into frame, the set feels more alive, not less. |
Works and people referenced on this page
The example sentences on this page are written for learners in the style of K-content, not quoted from any single work. Where a sentence names a real film, show or person, it is credited here.
- 런닝맨 (Running Man)TV show2010 · SBS
- 무한도전 (Infinite Challenge)TV show2005 · MBC
- 1박 2일 (2 Days & 1 Night)TV show2007 · KBS
- 유재석 (Yoo Jae-suk)PersonEntertainer
- 이수근 (Lee Soo-geun)PersonEntertainer
- 손흥민 (Son Heung-min)PersonAthlete
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Frequently asked questions
- How many Korean variety shows phrases are on this page?
- This page lists 60 variety shows phrases in Korean, each with romanization and an English meaning.
- What level are these Korean variety shows phrases?
- They span A2–B2 on the CEFR scale (A2 20 · B1 20 · B2 20), which suits beginner to intermediate learners.
- Can I hear how these Korean phrases are pronounced?
- Yes — every phrase on this page has a play button with audio. The free WeBring Korean app adds quizzes and spaced-repetition review.
- How many of these variety shows phrases are questions?
- 5 of the 60 end in a question mark; the other 55 are statements.
- What speech endings do these Korean phrases use?
- 30 end in the polite -요 form and 6 in the formal -습니다 form; the rest use other endings.