께
께: The Honorific 에게
Honorific dative — 'to' someone you would not address with 한테.
How to form it
| When | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Elevated person | N + 께 | 선생님께 / 어머님께 |
께 is the honorific 에게 — to someone you elevate.
표준국어대사전: 께 is the honorific of 에게. That is the whole particle. The page exists because learners glue respect onto the wrong slot (subject vs recipient) or stack 한테께.
What it does — elevate the recipient
Use 께 when the person receiving the action is someone you would not casually mark with 한테: teachers, elders, customers in careful service talk.
선생님께 선물을 드렸어요.
어머님께 말씀드렸어요.
사장님께 메일을 보냈어요.The particle raises the recipient. Humble verbs like 드리다 often travel with it — particle and verb each do part of the respect work.
께 vs 께서 — different jobs
| Job | Particle |
|---|---|
| Honorific to (recipient) | 께 |
| Honorific subject | 께서 |
| Plain to | 에게 / 한테 |
선생님께 드렸어요. to the teacher
선생님께서 오셨어요. the teacher (subject) came*선생님께서 드리다 as a giving-to frame mixes subject honorific into a recipient job. Recipient → 께. Subject → 께서.
When not to use it
Close same-age friends: 친구께 usually sounds stiff or sarcastic. Stay with 한테.
Do not stack: *한테께 is not a form. Pick one lane — casual 한테, careful 에게, honorific 께.
Practice rule: ask who receives? If that person is elevated, 께. If that person does the action as subject, you wanted 께서, not 께.
Do not confuse it with
Taught alongside this
On the jabi learning path, this appears in 엄마 친구는 어떻게 생겼어요? (What does your mom's friend look like?) — Beginner Korean 2, Unit 3, on the theme of appearance. These come with it:
Words used above
Quick check
No sign-up, no score saved — just see if it stuck.
1. Which is the honorific 'to the teacher'?
2. 께 vs 께서?
3. Can you say 친구께 for a close same-age friend?
Common questions
Dictionary?
표준국어대사전: 께 is the honorific of 에게.
한테께?
Not a form. Choose 한테 or 께 — do not stack them.
Verb pairing?
Often travels with humble verbs (드리다). The particle elevates the recipient; the verb choice completes the respect.
Same unit as modifiers?
Appearance talk still needs polite giving/telling: 어머니께 말씀드리다.