Learn Hardcore Korean: annyeong, oneureun gwaenchanha?

Breakdown of annyeong, oneureun gwaenchanha?

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Why does the sentence start with 안녕? Does it mean hello or bye?

안녕 is a casual greeting. In this sentence, it means hi/hello.

A few useful points:

안녕 by itself is casual, so you use it with friends, younger people, or someone you are close to.
It can also be used as bye in casual speech, depending on context.
The polite version is 안녕하세요 for greeting someone.

So in 안녕, 오늘은 괜찮아?, the speaker is casually saying Hi, are you okay today?

What does 오늘은 mean, and why is there an -은 attached to 오늘?

오늘 means today.

The -은 is the topic particle. It marks today as the topic or point of contrast. So 오늘은 is like:

In natural English, you usually would not translate -은 directly, but it adds nuance. For example, it can imply:

This particle often highlights a time, person, or thing that the speaker wants to focus on.

Why is it 괜찮아? and not 괜찮니? or 괜찮아요?