With whom: 하고, (이)랑, 와/과, 같이

Three ways to say and

To join two nouns, or to say with someone, Korean has three particles that mean the same thing at three levels of formality. 하고 is the everyday spoken one and never changes: 빵하고 우유, 친구하고 영화를 봐요. (이)랑 is the most casual – 이랑 after a consonant, 랑 after a vowel: 동생이랑, 언니랑. 와/과 is the written and formal one, and it reverses the usual rule: 와 after a vowel, 과 after a consonant – 친구와 선생님, 책과 연필. All three sit between the nouns or after the companion, never at the start of a sentence.

Together, alone, and how often

같이 together usually follows the companion: 친구하고 같이 가요 I go together with a friend. Its opposite is 혼자 alone: 혼자 살아요 I live alone. Frequency words go just before the verb or at the head of the sentence: 보통 usually, 항상 always, 자주 often, 가끔 sometimes. And the week splits into 평일 weekdays and 주말 the weekend, both taking 에: 평일에는 회사에 가요, 주말에는 쉬어요.

주말에는 가족하고 같이 밥을 먹어요At the weekend I eat with my family.

저는 항상 커피와 빵을 사요I always buy coffee and bread.