mykoreanstudy:

As a beginner, 반말 and 존댓말 is really all you need to know^^

And if you’re a beginner you really don’t need to read the rest of this answer because it’s me getting way too in depth. But you can if you’re interested haha

^Here is a chart with the levels of formality, but only 해체 해요체 and 합쇼체 are common in modern Korean. You may hear elder people use 해라체/하게체, while 하오체 is basically only used when people are being jokingly formal (in my experience).

It’s helpful to know all of them if you want to understand historical dramas/movies.

Even with only the three main levels, 높임법 is tricky, even for advanced speakers, and even for native Koreans at times. 

It’s difficult for foreigners because not only does it sometimes involve different endings (-요) and particles (-시) but many of the nouns/verbs differ depending on who is speaking and who is being spoken to.

The nouns are simple enough, if you memorize them.

집>댁, 나이>연세, 밥>진지, 사람>분 etc

The verbs are a little more complicated. 

to give: 주다(speaker respecting neither side over the other), 드리다 (speaker respecting receiver), 주시다(speaker respecting giver)

All the ways to ask someone if they ate:

밥 먹었어? (familiar, listener is below/at same level of speaker)

밥 먹었어요? (unfamiliar, listener is below/at same level of speaker)

식사하셨어요? (listener is above speaker, like a parent)

진지 잡수셨어요? (listener is even more above speaker, like a grandmother)

The verb changes based on whether the formality is direct/indirect.

아버지 집에 계시니? : 직접 높임 (direct) > notice how this isn’t 해요체, but it still uses -계시다(formal version of -있다) to respect the subject.

집에 키우는 개가 있으세요? : 간접 높임 (indirect) > notice how grammatically the subject is the dog, which is why -계시다 is not used, but the -시 particle is still used to respect the person who has the dog.

할머니 어디가 편찮으세요? : 직접 높임 (direct) > 편찮다 is used as the formal version of 아프다 to respect the subject.

치아가 아프세요? : 간접 높임 (indirect) > notice how grammatically the subject is the tooth, which is why -편찮다 is not used, but the 

-시 particle is still used to respect the person who has the tooth.

This can be difficult for even Koreans because the extent of indirect formality isn’t clear. For example, many Koreans would be appalled at a sentence like “음료가 나오셨습니다” while others insist it’s indirect formality. 

And then there’s particles like -께서(는) and -께, which seem simple enough (replacing -는 and -한테 when attached to subject that is above speaker), until you’re in a situation like this:

There’s also this funny thing where Koreans make writing more formal than speech. For example, some Koreans will speak to their parents in mostly 반말 but text them in 존댓말. Or talk to their professors in 해요체 but email them in only 합쇼체.

Gooooooooooooooood luck