01 자음 Korean consonants for beginners

한글 자음 · Korean Consonants for Total Beginners

Start with the shape.

Hangul has 14 basic consonants. Five original shapes were designed to represent the speech organs used to make their sounds. Learn these five ideas first, then explore all 14 consonants.

English letters such as g, k, d, and t are only rough guides. Korean sounds do not match English sounds exactly. Use the audio buttons to hear the Korean pronunciation.

THE FIVE BASIC SHAPES

Five shapes to remember first

These five shapes show the traditional design ideas behind the basic Korean consonants.

ㄱ

Back of the tongue

ㄱ represents the back of the tongue rising toward the back of the mouth.

ㄴ

Tip of the tongue

ㄴ represents the tongue tip touching the gum behind the upper teeth.

ㅁ

Mouth

ㅁ represents the shape of the mouth.

ㅅ

Teeth

The traditional explanation connects ㅅ with the shape of a tooth.

ㅇ

Throat

ㅇ represents the open throat.

STEP 1

The 14 basic consonants

Choose a letter. Watch it written stroke by stroke, then read its Korean name, a simple sound guide, and one example word. Use the audio buttons to hear the letter name and the word.

STEP 2

The 5 tense consonants · 쌍자음

These five consonants are written by doubling a basic consonant. Their sounds are short and firm, with much less breath than the aspirated consonants.

QUICK COMPARISON

Plain, aspirated, and tense

Do not try to match these sounds perfectly to English. First notice the contrast: plain, more breath, and tense.

PLAINASPIRATEDTENSE
ㄱㅋㄲ

가 · 카 · 까

PLAINASPIRATEDTENSE
ㄷㅌㄸ

다 · 타 · 따

PLAINASPIRATEDTENSE
ㅂㅍㅃ

바 · 파 · 빠

PLAINASPIRATEDTENSE
ㅈㅊㅉ

자 · 차 · 짜

PLAINTENSE
ㅅ—ㅆ

사 · 싸

STEP 3

받침 — consonants at the bottom

A consonant written under a syllable is called 받침 (batchim). Before a pause or another consonant, every final consonant is pronounced as just one of these seven sounds.

Why many letters sound the same at the bottom

Final consonants are neutralized: several written consonants share the same unreleased final sound. The sound can change again when the next syllable starts with a vowel, so those linking rules are learned as a later step.

겹받침 · double final consonants

When two different consonants share the bottom, usually only one is pronounced — still one of the seven sounds above. A few words are exceptions, so treat this as a guide, not a full rule.

Example exception: 밟다 keeps a ㅂ-type final sound in 밟-, even though ㄼ is usually realized as ㄹ elsewhere.

음절의 끝소리 규칙 · The final-sound rule

At the end of a syllable, Korean only releases seven consonant sounds. Any other final consonant is pronounced as the nearest of those seven. The spelling keeps the original letter, but the sound changes. Tap to hear it.

연음 · Linking to the next syllable

When the next syllable begins with a vowel (a silent ㅇ), the final consonant slides over and is pronounced at the start of that next syllable. This is why 옷 alone sounds like [옫], but 옷을 sounds like [오슬]. Tap to hear the linked pronunciation.

Next: Learn the vowels. Then combine consonants and vowels into complete Korean syllable blocks, and practice the batchim linking rules.
02 모음 Korean vowels for beginners

한글 모음 · Korean Vowels for Total Beginners

Heaven, earth, and a person.

The original vowel design starts with three shapes: a dot for Heaven, a flat line for Earth, and an upright line for a person. Learn the 10 basic vowel letters, then 11 more formed by combining simpler shapes.

Romanization and English sound hints are only rough guides. A letter such as ㅏ can be shown on its own while learning. In a syllable that begins with a vowel sound, use silent ㅇ: ㅇ + ㅏ = 아.

HOW THE VOWELS WERE DESIGNED

Three shapes from the world

King Sejong created Hunminjeongeum in 1443. The explanatory book published in 1446 describes the vowel design through Heaven, Earth, and a person. These are the historical ideas behind the shapes.

ㆍ

Heaven · 하늘

A round dot for Heaven. It developed into the short strokes in letters such as ㅏ, ㅓ, ㅗ, and ㅜ. The letters ㅡ and ㅣ have no such short stroke.

ㅡ

Earth · 땅

A flat line for the ground. It is the base of the "lying-down" vowels.

ㅣ

Human · 사람

An upright line for a standing person. It is the base of the "standing" vowels.

In the traditional design, right or upper dots are associated with yang (ㅏ, ㅗ); left or lower dots with yin (ㅓ, ㅜ). “Bright” and “dark” are traditional labels, not instructions about pitch or volume. The old letter ㆍ is not one of the 21 modern vowel letters.

Source: National Hangeul Museum

See how each vowel is built

Choose a shape to see how it appears in the 10 basic vowel letters.

STEP 1

The 10 basic vowels

Choose a letter below the card. Watch its strokes, read a sound guide, and learn one example word. Blue letters are written to the right of the initial consonant; green letters are written below it.

“Basic” refers to the written letters. The letters ㅑ, ㅕ, ㅛ, and ㅠ include a quick y-glide. IPA symbols are pronunciation guides; English spellings are approximate.

STEP 2

The 11 combined vowels

These letters combine simpler vowel shapes. “Combined” describes the spelling: some have one steady vowel sound, while others include a glide. Choose a letter to see its written components.

ㅐ and ㅔ: spelling and sound

The traditional distinction is ㅐ [ɛ] and ㅔ [e], with a more open mouth for ㅐ. Many modern speakers make little or no distinction. Keep the spellings separate: 개 means “dog,” and 게 means “crab.”

Source: National Institute of Korean Language

ㅚ and ㅟ: two accepted ways

Standard pronunciation recognizes a single rounded vowel for ㅚ [ø] and ㅟ [y]. It also allows the gliding forms ㅚ [we] and ㅟ [wi]. The IPA symbol [y] means a rounded vowel here.

ㅢ: the position matters

  • First-syllable 의: keep the ㅢ sound, as in 의자 (chair). Move from ㅡ toward ㅣ within one syllable.
  • With a pronounced initial consonant in the same syllable: ㅢ is pronounced [ㅣ], as in 희망 [히망] (hope). Silent initial ㅇ does not count as a consonant sound here.
  • 의 later in a word: [ㅣ] is also allowed. 주의 can be pronounced [주의] or [주이] (caution).
  • The particle 의: [ㅔ] is also allowed. 우리의 can be pronounced [우리의] or [우리에] (our).

Source: National Institute of Korean Language — ㅢ

QUICK COMPARISON

Bright vs. dark pairs

These common pairs show the traditional bright–dark contrast. Modern Korean keeps vowel harmony in limited patterns, especially endings such as 잡아 / 먹어 and words that imitate sounds or movements. It is not a rule that every word must follow.

STEP 3

When a syllable begins with a vowel sound

A normal Korean syllable block has an initial consonant position and a vowel position. When there is no initial consonant sound, write silent ㅇ in the initial position: 아, 오, 이, 우. With a pronounced initial consonant, write that consonant instead: ㄱ + ㅏ = 가.

From a vowel letter to a syllable block

A vowel letter alone is useful for naming and studying its shape. The examples below add silent initial ㅇ to make syllable blocks. At the bottom of a block, ㅇ has the “ng” sound [ŋ], as in 강 (gang, river).

STEP 4 · READING PRACTICE

Words you can read with vowels + silent ㅇ

These words have no pronounced initial consonant. Every syllable still contains the consonant letter ㅇ, which is silent in that position. Read one syllable at a time, then join them smoothly.

One-syllable words

Two-syllable words

Next: Put consonants and vowels together into syllable blocks. Start with consonant + vowel, then add an optional final consonant (batchim) at the bottom.

Pronunciation reference: National Institute of Korean Language — Standard Pronunciation, §§4–5.

03 글자 조합 Korean syllables for beginners

한글 음절 · Korean Syllables for Total Beginners

Letters stack into squares.

Korean words run from left to right, but the letters inside each syllable are grouped into a compact block. Each block represents one syllable. Learn how consonants and vowels fit together, and you can start decoding Korean words one block at a time.

Core rule: every syllable block has an initial consonant slot and a vowel. A final consonant (batchim) is optional. Always read the sounds in this order: initial → vowel → final.

INSIDE A SYLLABLE BLOCK

Three positions

Every block is built from up to three parts, always read in this order.

초성 · Initial

The first consonant. If the syllable starts with a vowel sound, this spot is a silent ㅇ.

중성 · Vowel

The vowel part. Every block has one medial vowel position, which may contain a simple or compound vowel. It sits to the right of, below, or around the initial.

종성 · Final (batchim)

An optional consonant that closes the block. It always goes across the bottom.

WHERE THE VOWEL GOES

The vowel decides the shape

Vertical vowels go to the right; horizontal vowels go below; compound vowels that combine both directions wrap around the initial. Tap each layout to compare.

Adding a batchim

A final consonant (batchim) goes across the bottom of the block. The basic vowel layout stays the same while the block is rebalanced to make room for the final: 가 → 간, 구 → 국, 과 → 관.

STEP 1 · BUILD IT YOURSELF

The syllable builder

Pick an initial consonant, a vowel, and an optional batchim. The block assembles live — see the shape, check a simple reading guide, and hear the syllable.

초성 · INITIAL CONSONANT
중성 · VOWEL
종성 · BATCHIM (optional)
가
ga
초 initial중 vowel종 final

About the romanization

The builder shows a simple spelling-based reading guide for one isolated block. In real words, Korean pronunciation can change when syllables meet. You will learn those sound-change rules after mastering the block system.

STEP 2

The block shapes at a glance

Every Korean syllable fits one of these arrangements. Tap to hear an example.

HOW TO READ A BLOCK

Always the same order

No matter the shape, read a block in one fixed order: initial → vowel → final.

Example: 국 (guk, "soup")

Initial: ㄱ (g) → vowel: ㅜ (u) → final: ㄱ (k). Put the sounds in that order: g-u-k = "guk." The letters change size and position to fit the block, but their identities do not change.

Every block starts with a consonant slot

That is why a syllable that begins with a vowel sound still needs ㅇ in the initial position: 아 (a), 오 (o), 우유 (u-yu, milk). Initial ㅇ is silent. Final ㅇ is pronounced "ng," as in 강 (gang).

PUT IT TOGETHER

Read real words, block by block

Words are written as syllable blocks in a row. Use the breakdown under each block to see the consonant and vowel pieces inside it, then listen to the whole word.

BEFORE YOU MOVE ON

Three beginner mistakes to avoid

These small rules make syllable reading much easier.

1. Do not read by screen position

Read by function: initial → vowel → final. A vowel may appear to the right, below, or in a compound shape.

2. Do not skip silent ㅇ

A vowel sound cannot occupy the initial slot by itself. Write 아, 어, 오, 우 — not a bare vowel symbol as a complete syllable.

3. Do not pronounce every final literally

Batchim spelling and actual pronunciation are not always identical in connected speech. First learn the block; then learn the sound rules.

QUICK CHECK

Can you read the structure?

Choose an answer, then reveal the explanation.

You now know the core block system. A Korean syllable is built in the order initial → vowel → optional final, while the vowel controls the visual layout. Next, practice what happens when syllables meet: batchim pronunciation, linking (옷을 → [오슬]), and other common sound-change patterns.