재방송 (jaebangsong) — The Episode You Missed Yesterday Comes Back at Two in the Morning
재방송
If you are a Korean drama fan, you have probably sat there at two in the morning with the remote in your hand at least once. 재방송 (jaebangsong) means airing a program again on radio or television after it has already been broadcast. If episode 12 that you missed live yesterday runs again in the small hours tonight, that is 재방송, and if you spin through every channel on a holiday afternoon and only find variety shows you are pretty sure you have seen before, those are all 재방송 too.
In hanja it is 다시 재(再), “again,” attached to 방송(放送), “broadcast.” It literally means “to send it out again,” so the word itself carries no good or bad coloring. It appears in broadcasters’ program schedules, in chat between friends, and in news captions exactly as it is. There is one more reason Korean learners should be glad to meet this word: a re-run lets you hear the same episode twice, which is a perfect setup for understanding it with subtitles the first time and following it by ear alone the second time.
As a verb, when the broadcaster is the subject it is 재방송하다 (jaebangsonghada); when the program is the subject it is 재방송되다 (jaebangsongdoeda). There are also plenty of expressions that use the noun just as it is: 재방송을 보다 (jaebangsong-eul boda), 재방송을 놓치다 (jaebangsong-eul nochida), and 재방송 편성 (jaebangsong pyeonseong).
When it comes to nuance, you only need to remember one thing. A 재방송 has a timetable. What goes out again at a time the broadcaster has decided is 재방송. What you pick and press whenever you feel like watching is not 재방송 but 다시보기 (dasibogi). If that distinction gets blurry, you land straight in the misuse that comes up later in this post.
There is also a use that goes one step further. When Koreans have to listen to a story they have already heard, they say 그 얘기 재방송이네 (geu yaegi jaebangsong-ine), “that story is a re-run.” It is a broadcasting term borrowed for everyday speech — a teasing jab said with a smile, definitely not a compliment.
Checking the National Institute of Korean Language Dictionary
The National Institute of Korean Language’s Basic Korean Dictionary defines 재방송 like this:
재방송 「Noun」 Airing again a program that has already been broadcast on radio, television, and the like. [EN] re-run — The act of airing again a show that has already been aired on radio, TV, etc. [JA] さいほうそう【再放送】 — ラジオやテレビなどで、以前に放送した番組を再び放送すること。 [ES] retransmisión — Acción de volver a transmitir programas ya emitidos en la radio o televisión. [ZH] 重播 — 重新播放广播或电视等已经播放过的节目。 — National Institute of Korean Language, Basic Korean Dictionary (krdict.korean.go.kr)
A Portuguese definition is not included in the dictionary. For reference, our editorial team would render it as reprise — ato de transmitir novamente um programa já exibido no rádio, na televisão etc. We want to be clear that this one line is our own translation, not the dictionary’s.
Let’s also look at the real usage examples the dictionary lists. Short as they are, they contain everything about where this word lives.
재방송이라서 곧이어 다음 회 또 하니까 그냥 둬. (jaebangsong-iraseo godieo daeum hoe tto hanikka geunyang dwo.) It’s a re-run, so the next episode comes on right after — just leave it. — National Institute of Korean Language, Basic Korean Dictionary (krdict.korean.go.kr)
This sentence pins down a key feature of re-runs. A 재방송 rarely airs as a single episode; two or three are usually played back to back. So here the speaker is stopping someone from changing the channel. 그냥 둬 (geunyang dwo) is very natural spoken Korean for “don’t change it, leave it as it is.”
나는 어제 못 봤던 드라마를 재방송으로 보았다. (naneun eoje mot bwatdeon deuramareul jaebangsong-euro boatda.) I watched the drama I couldn’t see yesterday as a re-run. — National Institute of Korean Language, Basic Korean Dictionary (krdict.korean.go.kr)
Here is the form learners should memorize first: 재방송으로 보다 (jaebangsong-euro boda). The particle -으로 (-euro) attaches to show by what route you watched it. This is the single most common thing a person says after missing the live broadcast.
원래 재방송은 재미가 없지만 개그 프로그램은 다시 봐도 항상 재미가 있다. (wollae jaebangsong-eun jaemiga eopjiman gaegeu peurogeuraem-eun dasi bwado hangsang jaemiga itda.) Re-runs are normally no fun, but comedy shows are always funny no matter how many times you watch them. — National Institute of Korean Language, Basic Korean Dictionary (krdict.korean.go.kr)
This sentence reveals the feeling that tends to come attached to re-runs. The default assumption is that watching something when you already know the ending is a letdown, and comedy programs are offered as the exception that flips that default. How Koreans feel about re-runs is packed into this one sentence.
이번 무대의 재방송 요청이 쇄도했다. (ibeon mudae-ui jaebangsong yocheong-i swaedohaetda.) Requests to re-air this performance came flooding in. — National Institute of Korean Language, Basic Korean Dictionary (krdict.korean.go.kr)
The temperature here is different from the sentences before it. Viewers are demanding that the broadcaster play something again, so the re-run is not a consolation prize but proof of excitement. This really does happen after standout music-show performances or awards-show stages. Because it is written in news style, it takes a stiff predicate like 쇄도했다 (swaedohaetda), “came flooding in.”
재방송을 보다. / 재방송을 듣다. / 재방송을 요청하다. (jaebangsong-eul boda. / jaebangsong-eul deutda. / jaebangsong-eul yocheonghada.) To watch a re-run. / To listen to a re-run. / To request a re-run. — National Institute of Korean Language, Basic Korean Dictionary (krdict.korean.go.kr)
These are the basic collocations the dictionary has gathered. Just remember that 보다 (boda) goes with television and 듣다 (deutda) goes with radio.
A Real Conversation
Setting: the second afternoon of the Lunar New Year holiday. The table has been cleared, and they are flipping channels on the living room sofa.
Emily: 어? 이거 나 저번 주에 봤는데. 왜 또 해? Huh? I already watched this last week. Why is it on again?
Jun-kyung: 명절엔 죄다 재방송이야. 이 시국에 누가 새로 찍냐. During the holidays it is all re-runs. Who is out there shooting new stuff right now?
Emily: 아 맞다, 나 어제 12회 놓쳤는데. 그거 재방송 언제 해? Oh right, I missed episode 12 yesterday. When is the re-run for that?
Jun-kyung: 새벽 두 시. 그냥 자고 내일 앱으로 봐. Two in the morning. Just go to sleep and watch it on the app tomorrow.
Emily: 아니야, 나는 재방송으로 봐야 재밌어. 중간에 광고까지 나와야 실감 나지. No way, it is more fun for me as a TV re-run. It does not feel real without the commercials in the middle.
Jun-kyung: 진짜 별나다. 난 먼저 잔다. You are something else. I am going to bed.
This Sounds Off
✗ 그 드라마 넷플릭스에서 재방송으로 봤어. (geu deurama netpeullikseu-eseo jaebangsong-euro bwasseo.) ✓ 그 드라마 넷플릭스에서 다시보기로 봤어. (geu deurama netpeullikseu-eseo dasibogi-ro bwasseo.) → “I watched that drama on Netflix.” A 재방송 is the broadcaster sending something out again at a set time. What you choose and press whenever you like is 다시보기 (dasibogi) or VOD. No timetable, no 재방송.
✗ (To your team manager) 부장님, 그 얘기 아까 하셨는데요. 완전 재방송이네요. (bujangnim, geu yaegi akka hasyeonneundeyo. wanjeon jaebangsong-ineyo.) ✓ (To a friend) 야, 그 얘기 아까 했잖아. 완전 재방송이야. (ya, geu yaegi akka haetjana. wanjeon jaebangsong-iya.) → “Hey, you already told that story. Total re-run.” The figurative use meaning “you’re repeating yourself” is a jab that says “not this again.” Close friends of the same age laugh it off, but used toward someone older or senior it sounds rude. With a senior, it is safer to soften it to something like 아까 말씀해 주신 부분이죠 (akka malsseumhae jusin bubun-ijyo), “that’s the part you mentioned earlier, right?”
Example Sentences by Situation
Situation 1 — You missed the live broadcast and are digging through the schedule
어제 방송분 재방송 언제 해요? (eoje bangsongbun jaebangsong eonje haeyo?) “When is the re-run of yesterday’s episode?” This asks when the re-run of the episode that aired yesterday will be. It goes up every single day on fan communities and broadcaster message boards. 방송분 (bangsongbun) means “the episode that was broadcast,” so it is worth memorizing as a chunk.
Situation 2 — Stopping someone from changing the channel
이거 재방송인데 그냥 봐. 나 이 장면 다시 보고 싶어. (igeo jaebangsong-inde geunyang bwa. na i jangmyeon dasi bogo sipeo.) “This is a re-run, but just watch it. I want to see this scene again.” You know you have already seen it, but you keep it on for one particular scene. -인데 (-inde) is a connective ending that acknowledges the preceding fact and then carries on with a “but still.”
Situation 3 — Asking for something to be aired again
그 무대만이라도 재방송해 주시면 안 될까요? (geu mudae-manirado jaebangsonghae jusimyeon an doelkkayo?) “Could you re-air at least that performance?” This is the polite tone you use to request something from a broadcaster. -만이라도 (-manirado) means “if not everything, then at least this,” and -면 안 될까요 (-myeon an doelkkayo) is one of the softest ways to make a request in Korean.
Formal vs. Casual Speech, and Similar Expressions
재방송 itself is a noun, so it carries no politeness level of its own. You just change the sentence ending. To someone older or senior: 재방송합니다 (jaebangsonghamnida) / 재방송해요 (jaebangsonghaeyo). To a friend: 재방송해 (jaebangsonghae). The figurative use, however, belongs only in casual speech.
| Expression | Temperature / intensity | Where it’s used |
|---|---|---|
| 재방송 (jaebangsong) | Neutral. Just stating a fact | Program schedules, news, everyday conversation — anywhere |
| 다시보기 (dasibogi) | Neutral. The side you choose yourself | OTT services and apps. Pressing play with no timetable |
| 본방사수 (bonbangsasu) | Hot and excited | Fandoms and social media. Not for formal settings |
| 재탕 (jaetang) | Negative. A jab at milking something | Among close friends. Never in official documents |
재탕 (jaetang) originally means brewing already-used ingredients a second time, so using it about a program schedule turns it into a dig at the broadcaster. Think of it this way: 재방송 when you are stating a fact, 재탕 when you are complaining — and the line between them becomes obvious.
Cultural Background — Two in the Morning and Holiday Afternoons
Korean re-runs have two fixed time slots. One is the stretch where late night turns into early morning. That slot exists for people who could not catch yesterday’s live broadcast, so drama fans treated it as a last chance. The other is the afternoons of the Lunar New Year and Chuseok holidays. Production crews are off during that period, so the schedule fills up with re-runs and special feature films — which is why the holidays come with a scene attached: the table cleared away, everyone sinking into the sofa, staring blankly at something that looks awfully familiar. That is exactly why the conversation above is set in a holiday living room.
On the opposite side stands 본방사수 (bonbangsasu). It means “defending the original broadcast” — fandom slang for guarding the first airing with your life. It hardened into a set phrase back when ratings determined a show’s lifespan and fans urged each other to be sure to watch live tonight. 본방사수 and 재방송 are, in effect, two attitudes split apart over the same program.
The landscape has changed a lot since then. As 다시보기 (dasibogi) and OTT services took over, fewer people set alarms for two in the morning. Even so, the word 재방송 has not disappeared. If anything, through figures of speech like 그 얘기 재방송이네 (geu yaegi jaebangsong-ine) it has walked out of broadcasting and into everyday language. From a Korean learner’s point of view, this one word lets you read a program schedule and understand your friend’s teasing at the same time.
Today’s Quiz
Emily picked a drama that aired last week and watched it on Netflix by choosing it herself. Which sentence fits this situation best?
- 나 그거 재방송으로 봤어. (na geugeo jaebangsong-euro bwasseo.) — “I watched it as a re-run.”
- 나 그거 다시보기로 봤어. (na geugeo dasibogi-ro bwasseo.) — “I watched it on catch-up/VOD.”
- 나 그거 본방사수했어. (na geugeo bonbangsasuhaesseo.) — “I caught it live.”
The answer is 2. Something going out again at a time the broadcaster set is 재방송, while picking and pressing play whenever you want is 다시보기. Option 3 means you watched it in real time during the first airing, which does not match watching last week’s broadcast only now.
Definitions and example sentences are from the National Institute of Korean Language’s Basic Korean Dictionary (krdict.korean.go.kr); that portion of this post, including our translations, is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 KR.