Knowledge Sharing: 정말 vs. 진짜 vs. 너무

What is the difference among 정말, 진짜, and 너무?

정말 means "really" (usually for positive endings)
정말 is about truth "in words" (as opposed to 거짓말, "lie")

For example:

- 정말 귀엽다. (Really, it's cute.)

진짜 means "true, truly"

진짜 has another sense of "genuine" (as opposed to 가짜, "fake, forgery")

진짜 is more often used for questions or when annoyed.

For example:

- "Oh. 진짜?" ("Truly?")

- "Ah! 진짜!" ("Why you acting like that!")

너무 means "too much"

It is suppose to be for negative things/sentences to show that is it too much or excessive.

For example:

- 너무 나쁘다. (It's too bad.)

진짜 and 정말 can be used interchangeably as "really", but 진짜 sounds a little informal than 정말. Sometimes Korean will use 너무 with positive endings.

For example:

- 너무 귀엽다. (It's too cute.)

- 너무 예뻐. (Really pretty.)

Reference:

Knowledge Sharing