Pronunciation(ko)

The Korean script, Hangeul, may seem intimidating, but don't worry; it's actually a lot like the alphabet we use in English, a small set of characters representing the sounds of the language. Of course, it's not perfect, but in general it matches spoken Korean better than English does.

Syllable Blocks

Unlike English, written Korean is organized into syllable blocks. Each block represents a single syllable and consists of two to four letters. The Korean word for ‘hello,’ 안녕하세요, is composed of 12 letters organized into five syllable blocks. Annyeonghaseyo!

Both letters and syllable blocks are written from left to right and from top to bottom.

Basic Vowels

We begin with the six basic vowels of Korean: ㅏ, ㅓ, ㅗ, ㅜ, ㅡ, and ㅣ. Their names are 아, 어, 오, 우, 으, and 이, respectively, where the letter ㅇ, or ieung, remains silent, acting as a place holder. In the same way, you may just add an ㅇ to get the name of any other vowel. Note that ‘ㅏ,’ ‘ㅓ,’ and ‘ㅣ’ are written to the side of the initial consonant while ‘ㅗ,’ ‘ㅜ,’ and ‘ㅡ’ are written beneath the initial consonant.

한글	Romanization	Pronunciation
ㅏ	a	/a/ Bach
ㅓ	eo	/ʌ/ gut
ㅣ(this)	i	/i/ bee
ㅜ	u	/u/ boo
ㅗ	o	/o/ go
ㅡ	eu	/ɯ/ ugh

‘어’ is a short ‘o’ sound, difficult for many American English speakers, similar to the ‘u’ ‘cup’ or to the o in yogurt for British speakers.

‘으’ is also difficult, being rare in English, although it is a short ‘u’ something close to the uh in uh-oh.

Iotized Vowels

By adding an additional dash we get a y-sound.

한글	Romanization	Pronunciation
ㅑ	ya	/ja/
ㅕ	yeo	/jʌ/
ㅠ	yu	/ju/
ㅛ	yo	/jo/

Diphthongs

Korean has two way of forming diphthongs. The first is to add an ㅣ to the base vowel.

한글	Romanization	Pronunciation
ㅐ	ae	/ɛ/ bed
ㅔ	e	/e/ bed
ㅢ	ui	/ɰi/ we
ㅒ	yae	/jɛ/
ㅖ(yes)	ye	/je/

Due to recent sound changes, 애(얘) and 에(예) are pronounced the same in most Korean dialects.

의 is usually pronounced something like "we" on its own.

The second set of diphthongs is formed by adding an ㅗ or an ㅜ.

한글	Romanization	Pronunciation
ㅘ	wa	/wa/
ㅙ	wae	/wɛ/
ㅚ	oe	/ø/ or /we/
ㅝ	wo	/wʌ/
ㅞ	we	/we/
ㅟ(on, above,stomach)	wi	/wi/

Due to sound changes, 왜, 외, and 웨 sound the same in most modern Korean dialects.

Basic Consonants

한글	Romanization	Pronunciation
ㅁ	m	/m/
ㄴ	n	/n/
ㅇ	ng	/ŋ/ (no sound at start of syllable)
ㄱ	g	/g/ or /k/
ㅂ	b	/b/ or /p/
ㄷ	d	/d/ or /t/
ㄹ	l/r	/ɾ/or /l/
ㅈ	j	/ʨ/ jam
ㅅ	s	/s/ or /ɕ/

ㄱ, ㅂ, and ㄷ represent both voiced and unvoiced sounds (g/k, b/p, and d/t), depending on the surrounding sounds. With these sounds, there should be no air coming from your mouth.

ㄹ is like Spanish r, where the tip of the tongue strikes the palate very briefly. When it is a final consonant introduced below, it is pronounced like an l.

ㅅ in most situations sounds like an s, but before ㅣ or "iotized" vowels it sounds more like "sh".

Aspirants

한글	Romanization	Pronunciation
ㅋ	k	/kʰ/
ㅍ	p	/pʰ/
ㅌ	t	/tʰ/
ㅊ	ch	/tɕʰ/
ㅎ	h	/h/

Aspirants are consonants followed by a puff of air. Hold a small sheet of paper in front of your mouth. Notice that the paper moves when you pronounce the English words ‘pen’ and touch’ due to the aspiration.

Tense Consonants

한글	Romanization	Pronunciation
ㄲ	kk	/k͈/
ㅃ	pp	/p͈/
ㄸ	tt	/t͈/
ㅉ	jj	/t͈ɕ/
ㅆ	ss	/s͈/

Tense consonants are pronounced with extra emphasis. Sometimes regular ㄱ, ㅂ, ㅈ, ㅅ, and ㄷ sound become tense in the middle of words, especially for younger speakers.

갔: gat(from duolingo)

Final Consonants

Korean only have a few possible sounds at the end of a syllable, so many consonants' pronunciations change.

Final Sound	Letters
ㄱ	ㄱ ㅋ ㄲ
ㄷ	ㄷ ㅌ ㅅ ㅆ ㅈ ㅊ ㅎ
ㅂ	ㅂ ㅍ
ㄴ	ㄴ
ㅁ	ㅁ
ㅇ	ㅇ
ㄹ	ㄹ

When two consonants appear in the final position, only one of them is pronounced:

Final Sound	Letter Pairs
ㄱ	ㄳ ㄺ
ㄴ	ㄵ ㄶ
ㄹ	ㄼ ㄽ ㄾ ㅀ
ㅁ	ㄻ
ㅂ	ㄿ ㅄ

When followed by a vowel, final consonants (except ㅇ and ㅎ) move to the start of the next syllable. Consonants revert back to their original pronunciations and pairs are split, allowing both to be pronounced. ㅇ does not move, and ㅎ disappears before a vowel. Tense consonants (ㄲ, ㅆ) are not pairs.

Written	Pronunciation
독일	도길
웃음	우슴
영어	영어
관용어	과뇽어
놓이다	노이다
닭이	달기
많이	마니
엮음	여끔

Assimilation

Many consonants change their pronunciations when a consonant at the end of one syllable influences or is influenced by the consonant at the start of the next.

Situation	Pronunciation	Example
ㄱ ㅋ ㄲ+nasal	ㅇ+nasal	국물 [궁물]
ㄱ ㅋ ㄲ+ㄹ	ㅇ+ㄴ	낙뢰 [낭뇌]
ㄷ ㅌ ㅅ ㅆ ㅈ ㅊ ㅎ+nasal	ㄴ+nasal	꽃말 [꼰말]
ㅂ ㅍ+nasal	ㅁ+nasal	입니다 [임니다], 없는 [엄는]
ㅂ+ㄹ	ㅁ+ㄴ	법률 [범뉼]
ㄹ+ㄴ	ㄹ+ㄹ	실내 [실래]
ㄴ+ㄹ	ㄹ+ㄹ	신라 [실라], 물난리[물랄리]
nasal (except ㄴ)+ㄹ	nasal+ㄴ	성립 [성닙]

Nasal sounds: ㄴ, ㅁ, final ㅇ