Mastering Hangul with Pronunciation Hacks

안녕하세요 여러분! I'm Vaibhavi from India. This blog post goes beyond the typical beginner's lesson and will introduce you to not just the letters, but also some interesting quirks that make Korean pronunciation so unique!

King Sejong the Great created it in the 15th century with one goal in mind: making reading and writing accessible to the masses. Hangul consists of 14 consonants and 10 vowels. The letters are designed to represent the shape your mouth makes when pronouncing them. Genius, right?

Consonant	Romanization	Sound
ㄱ	g/k	Like “g” in "go," but at the end of a syllable, it sounds like "k."
ㄴ	n	Like “n” in "no."
ㄷ	d/t	“d” in "dog," but “t” when at the end.
ㄹ	r/l	The trickiest! Flap your tongue like an "r" but if it’s at the end of a word, it's closer to an "l."
ㅁ	m	Like “m” in "man."
ㅂ	b/p	“b” in "boy," but “p” at the end of a syllable.
ㅅ	s	“s” like in "snake," but sometimes turns into "sh" before certain vowels like ㅣ (i).
ㅇ	ng (or silent)	Silent when at the start of a syllable, but like “ng” in "sing" at the end.
ㅈ	j	Like “j” in "jar."
ㅊ	ch	Like “ch” in "chop."
ㅋ	k	Aspirated "k" (with more air). Think "kite."
ㅌ	t	Like “t” in "top," but with a puff of air.
ㅍ	p	Aspirated "p" (think "potato").
ㅎ	h	A soft “h,” like "hat." Almost disappears in fast speech!

TIP : When consonants are at the end of a syllable, they often become "tensed" or cut off more abruptly. This explains why ㄱ, ㄷ, ㅂ, and ㅈ can sound more like "k," "t," "p," and "t" respectively at the end of a word.

The Vowels (모음)

Hangul vowels can be a bit of a roller coaster ride for English speakers, but once you get the hang of them, it’s smooth sailing.

Vowel	Romanization	Sound
ㅏ	a	Like “a” in "father."
ㅑ	ya	Like “ya” in "yarn."
ㅓ	eo	Like “uh” in "cup."
ㅕ	yeo	Like “yuh” in "young."
ㅗ	o	Like “o” in "go."
ㅛ	yo	Like “yo” in "yogurt."
ㅜ	u	Like “oo” in "moon."
ㅠ	yu	Like “you” in "yule."
ㅡ	eu	Like “u” in "put" (but without rounding your lips).
ㅣ	i	Like “ee” in "see."

Pro tip: Korean vowels can be combined to form diphthongs (fancy word for double sounds). For example, ㅐ (ae) sounds like “a” in "cat," and ㅒ (yae) like "yeah."

Pronunciation Exception:

1. Silent ㅇ at the Start :

When ㅇ starts a syllable, it’s completely silent. So 아 is just pronounced “a,” not “nga.”

2. The Double Consonant (쌍자음)

Korean has “double consonants” that are tense or “stronger” versions of their single counterparts. For instance:

• ㄲ = gg

• ㄸ = dd

• ㅃ = bb

• ㅆ = ss (this one is common and often used to stress a word)

• ㅉ = jj

When you see these, tighten your throat a bit when pronouncing them for that extra emphasis. It’s subtle but powerful!

3. The “S” Shapeshifter

The consonant ㅅ can change to a “sh” sound before the vowels ㅣ, ㅕ, ㅑ, ㅠ, and ㅛ. So 시 is pronounced “shi,” not “si.”

Consonant Assimilation

In Korean, sounds sometimes “assimilate,” meaning one sound changes because of the sound that follows:

1. Batchim (받침): Consonants at the End :

When consonants appear at the end of a syllable (받침), they sometimes morph:

• ㄷ (d/t) changes to ㅌ (t) before ㅎ. So 좋다 becomes [조타] (jo-ta).

• ㅂ becomes ㅍ when followed by ㅎ. For example, 잡히다 sounds like [자피다] (ja-pi-da).

• ㄱ becomes ㅋ when followed by ㅎ, turning 먹히다 into [머키다] (meo-ki-da).

  
  

2. Nasalization: The Nose Knows :

When certain consonants are followed by ㄴ (n) or ㅁ (m), they turn into nasal sounds:

• ㅂ + ㄴ becomes ㅁ + ㄴ. So 합니다 sounds like [함니다] (ham-ni-da).

• ㄱ + ㅁ becomes ㅇ + ㅁ, changing 국물 to [궁물] (gung-mul).

  
  

Bonus:

Koreans tend to drop the ㅎ sound in casual speech. So instead of pronouncing 괜찮아요 as [괜차나요], it often sounds like [괜자나요] (gwen-ja-na-yo).

That's it for post. See you in the next post... Visit koreanstudyjunkie.com for more such free lessons. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment!!

Happy learning !!