Korean at the Post Office: Sending a Package with -에 보내고 싶어요
Learn to say 'I'd like to send this package to...' in Korean, choose delivery options, and handle a real post office conversation at intermediate level.
By SofiaGetting around · Yapr Learn
Sending a package in Korea means speaking to a postal clerk, and the key sentence you need is a polite request built on the verb 보내다 (bonaeda, 'to send'). In this lesson you will learn how to state your destination with the particle -에, express desire with -고 싶어요, and understand the delivery choices clerks will offer you, such as 일반택배 (ilban taekbae, regular parcel) and 등기 (deunggi, registered mail). You will also learn how to ask about cost and arrival time, and how to respond when the clerk asks what is inside the box, since Korean postal staff routinely ask this for customs and safety reasons.
By the end, you can…
- say 'I'd like to send this package to [place]' using -에 보내고 싶어요.
- ask how much shipping costs and when the package will arrive.
- understand and choose between regular, registered, and express delivery options.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
이 소포를 부산에 보내고 싶어요.
I'd like to send this package to Busan.
i sopo-reul Busan-e bonaego sipeoyo
The core sentence of this lesson. 소포 (sopo) means 'parcel'; use it for boxed items rather than 편지 (pyeonji, letter).
배송비가 얼마예요?
How much is the shipping fee?
baesongbi-ga eolmayeyo?
배송비 (baesongbi) is the standard word for delivery charge. 얼마예요 is the polite, everyday way to ask a price.
일반택배로 보내 주세요.
Please send it by regular parcel.
ilban taekbae-ro bonae juseyo
The particle -로 marks the means or method. 일반택배 is the slower, cheaper option.
등기로 보내면 며칠 걸려요?
If I send it registered, how many days does it take?
deunggi-ro bonaemyeon myeochil geollyeoyo?
등기 (deunggi) gives you a tracking number. 며칠 걸려요 is the natural way to ask about duration.
안에 뭐가 들어 있어요?
What is inside it?
ane mwo-ga deureo isseoyo?
A question the clerk will likely ask you first. Answer with a noun plus -이에요/예요, for example 책이에요 (chaeg-ieyo, 'It's books').
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The pattern [place] + -에 + 보내고 싶어요 lets you state any destination. -에 marks the goal of movement, so 서울에 (Seoul-e), 미국에 (Miguk-e, 'to the US'), and 고향에 (gohyang-e, 'to my hometown') all work the same way. To be more polite to a clerk, you can say 보내고 싶은데요 (bonaego sipeundeyo), which softens the request and invites the clerk's help. If you want to name the method, add -로: 배편으로 (baepyeon-euro, 'by ship') or 항공편으로 (hanggongpyeon-euro, 'by air').
When to use it
Use 보내고 싶어요 when you are stating your own wish at the counter. If the clerk asks a question and you simply agree, answer with -로 해 주세요 (…ro hae juseyo, 'please do it as…'), for example 일반택배로 해 주세요. When you are unsure which option is better, ask 비교해 주세요 (bigyohae juseyo, 'please compare them for me') or 더 싼 걸로 해 주세요 (deo ssan geollo hae juseyo, 'please make it the cheaper one'). Note that 걸로 is the contracted spoken form of 것으로.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
안녕하세요. 이 소포를 제주도에 보내고 싶어요.
Hello. I'd like to send this package to Jeju Island.annyeonghaseyo. i sopo-reul Jejudo-e bonaego sipeoyo.네, 안에 뭐가 들어 있어요?
Sure, what is inside it?ne, ane mwo-ga deureo isseoyo?책하고 옷이에요. 일반택배로 보내면 얼마예요?
Books and clothes. How much is it if I send it by regular parcel?chaek-hago os-ieyo. ilban taekbae-ro bonaemyeon eolmayeyo?오천 원이고, 이틀 걸려요. 등기로 하시면 만 원이에요.
It's 5,000 won and takes two days. If you do registered mail, it's 10,000 won.ocheon won-igo, iteul geollyeoyo. deunggi-ro hasimyeon man won-ieyo.A little context goes a long way
Korean postal clerks usually ask what is inside a package before accepting it, so be ready to answer briefly and honestly. Politeness matters: use -요 endings with staff, and say 감사합니다 (gamsahamnida) when you finish. If you do not understand a number or option, it is perfectly normal to ask 다시 한번 말씀해 주세요 (dasi hanbeon malsseumhae juseyo, 'please say that again').
One thing to watch for
Saying 이 소포를 부산으로 보내고 싶어요 with -으로 instead of -에 for the destination.
Try this instead: Use -에 for the destination and -로 only for the method: 이 소포를 부산에 보내고 싶어요 (destination) versus 일반택배로 보내 주세요 (method). Mixing them can make the sentence sound as if Busan is a shipping method rather than the place it is going.
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How would you say 'I'd like to send this package to Seoul'?
Show a sample answer
이 소포를 서울에 보내고 싶어요.
-에 marks Seoul as the destination, and 보내고 싶어요 expresses 'I'd like to send.' 이 소포를 서울로 보내고 싶어요 is also heard, but -에 is the safer, more standard choice for a destination.
2The clerk asks 안에 뭐가 들어 있어요? and you are sending clothes. What do you answer?
Show a sample answer
옷이에요.
A short noun plus -이에요 answers the question directly. If there are several items, you can list them: 옷하고 책이에요 ('It's clothes and books').
3You want the cheaper option. What can you tell the clerk?
Show a sample answer
더 싼 걸로 해 주세요.
걸로 is the spoken contraction of 것으로, and 해 주세요 means 'please do it.' 더 싼 것으로 해 주세요 is the fuller, slightly more formal version and is equally correct.
At the Korean post office, lead with 이 소포를 [place]에 보내고 싶어요, then use -로 to choose your method, and be ready to answer 안에 뭐가 들어 있어요? before you pay.
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