Meet the fourteen basic consonants
Read each basic consonant with ㅏ and notice its shape.
Resume where you left offRead, 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
g / k
가
Compare its corner with ㄴ.
ㄴ
n
나
An upright stroke meets a bottom stroke.
ㄷ
d / t
다
Three sides, open to the right.
ㄹ
r / l
라
Notice the stepped shape. Its sound changes with position.
ㅁ
m
마
A closed box.
ㅂ
b / p
바
Two uprights and two cross strokes.
ㅅ
s
사
Two slanting strokes meet.
ㅇ
silent initially
아
A circle. It is silent here.
ㅈ
j
자
Compare its top with ㅅ.
ㅊ
ch
차
Notice the extra mark above ㅈ.
ㅋ
k
카
An extra line distinguishes it from ㄱ.
ㅌ
t
타
An extra middle line distinguishes it from ㄷ.
ㅍ
p
파
Two horizontal lines with two strokes between.
ㅎ
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.
A little review
Choose an answer for each question. Get all three to complete this lesson.
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