Meet the fourteen basic consonants
Read each basic consonant with ㅏ and notice its shape.
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A rough reading aid, not exact pronunciation. Hyphens separate syllables. Listen first, then try with hints hidden. “eu” is said with unrounded lips; “uh” only approximates ㅓ. Doubled consonants are tense, not extra syllables. Do not add a vowel after a final consonant.
Read, compare and repeat
Practice the fourteen basic Korean consonants using simple syllables. Listen to each complete syllable instead of treating English letter hints as exact Korean sounds.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Focus on the Korean audio as you learn.
ㄱ
Sound hint가 · gah
g / k
가
Compare its corner with ㄴ.
ㄴ
Sound hint나 · nah
n
나
An upright stroke meets a bottom stroke.
ㄷ
Sound hint다 · dah
d / t
다
Three sides, open to the right.
ㄹ
Sound hint라 · rah
r / l
라
Notice the stepped shape. Its sound changes with position.
ㅁ
Sound hint마 · mah
m
마
A closed box.
ㅂ
Sound hint바 · bah
b / p
바
Two uprights and two cross strokes.
ㅅ
Sound hint사 · sah
s
사
Two slanting strokes meet.
ㅇ
Sound hint아 · ah
silent initially
아
A circle. It is silent here.
ㅈ
Sound hint자 · jah
j
자
Compare its top with ㅅ.
ㅊ
Sound hint차 · chah
ch
차
Notice the extra mark above ㅈ.
ㅋ
Sound hint카 · kah
k
카
An extra line distinguishes it from ㄱ.
ㅌ
Sound hint타 · tah
t
타
An extra middle line distinguishes it from ㄷ.
ㅍ
Sound hint파 · pah
p
파
Two horizontal lines with two strokes between.
ㅎ
Sound hint하 · hah
h
하
A circle with strokes above it.
Read it in small steps
가, 나, 다
Change only the first letter.
마, 바, 사
Keep the same vowel.
자, 차
Look at the extra mark.
나무, 바다
나무 is tree; 바다 is sea.
Try it for yourself
Point to the starting letter in 나, 마 and 하. Copy it once, then add ㅏ to make the whole syllable. Come back to letters you confuse; speed is not the goal.
Make yourself heard.
Listen once. Record yourself saying the phrase, then listen back.
가, 나, 다, 라, 마
Up to 20 seconds. Your recording stays in this page and is never uploaded by HangulHada.
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