Korean songs pack a lot into their endings: how polite the singer is being, who is being addressed, whether a line is a question, a sigh or a promise. Many also switch into English halfway through a line. Korean and English are already selected in the translator above, so paste the lyrics in Hangul and you get a faithful English translation, a singable English version and notes on whatever does not carry over.
Korean verbs change their endings depending on how formal or close the speaker is. A love song in casual banmal feels intimate, while polite yo endings can sound shy, careful or respectful. English has no grammar for this, so the translation carries the tone through word choice, and the notes mention it when a change of speech level is part of the story.
Korean often addresses people by relationship instead of by name or you: oppa, unnie, hyung, noona and many more. Each one tells you the speaker's gender and that the listener is older. Turning every one of them into you loses a lot, so the notes explain what a title implies and you can decide whether to keep the Korean word in your own version.
Korean drops I and you whenever context makes them clear, and a whole verse can pass without a single pronoun. English needs one in almost every line, so the translation has to decide who is doing what from the rest of the song.
Many Korean songs mix in English words and full English lines, and some loanwords shift meaning in Korean: skinship means affectionate touching, and fighting is a cheer of encouragement. Parts already in English stay as they are, and loanwords used the Korean way are translated by what they mean in Korean.
Each Hangul block is one sung syllable, and fast Korean lines often put a syllable on every beat, with endings like haeyo or haesseo landing right on the rhythm. A singable English line needs about the same number of syllables to fit, which often means choosing a shorter image over a word for word match.
Two original lines, written for this page. A pronunciation guide sits under each Korean line. The first line has 11 syllables and the second has 12.
오늘 밤만은 내 손을 놓지 마
Pronunciation: oneul bammaneun nae soneul nochi ma
별이 다 꺼져도 난 여기 있을게
Pronunciation: byeori da kkeojyeodo nan yeogi isseulge
Just for tonight, don't let go of my hand,
even if every star goes out, I'll be here.
Just for tonight, don't let go of my hand
if every star burns out, I'll still be standing here
The ending eulge in isseulge is a casual promise made to someone close, softer than a formal I will. The faithful line simply says I'll be here. The singable line adds still and standing to fill the twelve notes and to keep the sound of a promise. The casual speech level throughout tells you the two people are close, something English can only show through the tone of the words.
Yes. Anything already in English is kept as it is in both versions, and only the Korean is translated. Loanwords used the Korean way are translated by their Korean meaning, and the notes explain any that might confuse an English reader.
Hangul works best. Romanized lyrics can be read too, but romanization loses information, since different Korean spellings can end up looking the same in Latin letters, so some lines may come out less accurate. If you have the Hangul, use it.
It reads them for what they say about the relationship. The notes explain what a title implies, such as the speaker's gender and that the listener is older, so you can choose whether your English version keeps the Korean word or uses a name or you instead.
It is written for that: each line stays within about two syllables of the Korean and close to its rhythm, and lines that rhyme still rhyme. Korean verses often put a syllable on every beat, so check the fast parts by singing them. If the song is not yours, releasing a cover with new lyrics may need permission from its writers or publisher.
Yes. Switch the tool to Upload a song. It writes down the Korean lyrics as they are sung, shows them to you, and translates them in the same step. Each mode shows its price on its button.