If you want to address a group of people all at once, you’ll need to know the correct words and situations to use. Let’s look at the different words for ‘everyone’.
여러분 (yeo-reo-bun)
This is a word that is used often and you may even already recognize it. It’s one of the first words my Korean friends taught me. This word would usually be used when you want to get everyone’s attention immediately for an announcement or important information. This is a bit more formal than the others, so you could use it in an office or work setting.
The key to remember with this word is that it can only be used when you are actually addressing ‘everyone’…like a group of people. You wouldn’t be able to use it if you wanted to say something like ‘Everyone is at the beach today.’
Examples:
여러분 잠깐만요. (yeo-reo-bun jam-kkan-ma-nyo) = Everyone wait a minute.
여러분 지금! (yeo-reo-bun ji-geum) = Everyone now!
여러분 시작! (yeo-reo-bun ~ – si-jak) = Everyone start!
모두 (mo-du)/ 다들 (da-deul)
Now, if you actually wanted to talk ABOUT everyone, you know people that you are observing and not talking to, then you can use these words. 모두 has many forms and all of them mean ‘all’ in different contexts including for objects and activities. Let’s check out some examples for these two.
모두 사랑해요. (mo-du sa-rang-hae-yo) = I love you all.
우리 모두 행복합시다. (u-ri mo-du haeng-bo-kap-ssi-da) = Let’s all be happy.
우리 가족은 모두 스키를 즐긴다. (u-ri ga-jo-geun mo-du seu-ki-reul jjeul-kkin-da) = Everyone is my family enjoys skiing.
다들 일찍 나와 계시네요. (da-deul il-jjik na-wa gye-si-ne-yo) = Everyone is here early today.
다들 알고 있다고 생각했어. (da-deul al-kko it-tta-go saeng-ga-kae-sseo) = I thought everyone knew.
다들 행복해 했다. (da-deul haeng-bo-kae haet-tta) = Everyone was happy.
Sometimes, you can use 모두들 and 모든 사람들 for everyone as well. The main thing to remember is that 여러분 is for addressing everyone with something you want to say, and the 모두 and 다들 is for talking about everyone.