In fact, that’s its primary purpose: counting things. The Native Korean numbers are used to talk about the hour in time (but not days, months, or years), age, and counting things and people.
Memorizing these 10 in both systems will help you with every other number going forward! If you know other languages, you can use those to help with mnemonics, too! Hana in Korean means “one”, but “hana” in Japanese means “flower.” I remember it by thinking “hana hana: one flower!”įind what works for you and take some time here. For example, “I set 3 plates on the table.”
You’ll use the Sino-Korean number system for things like counting money, math, measurements, the names of the months, and phone numbers. So, I tell him to count to 10 to cool his jets. I created a distinct image: A guy who’s super angry, he’s spitting while he talks. Try counting to calm down… That’s it… 5, 6, 7, 8…” The first four words sound like the Korean words for 5, 6, 7, and 8. Chill, pal, you’re spitting when you talk. You can also stack them in the same mnemonic sentence: “Oh, yuck. I like using mnemonics to memorize vocabulary, and it’s easy to do here.įor instance, in Korean, 일 ( il) can mean “one” or “work.” I remember it by saying, “I’ll work at one o’clock today.” See? “I’ll” is like il, and I’ve included both vocabulary words. The Sino-Korean Numbers, also known as the China System, are what we looked at already: So, let’s first look at the China System. You see this with hanja (Chinese characters) in Korean. Both languages originally used Chinese characters, but then created their own native writing systems: Korean hangul and Japanese kana.ĭespite coming up with their own way of writing, they both kept Chinese characters. Well, China influenced the writing systems of both Japanese and Korean. (If you’ve studied Japanese before, this may not surprise you. The only challenging part? There are two Korean writing systems: Sino-Korean numbers and Native Korean numbers. So if you’re pressed for time, or just trying to apply the 80/20 rule of vocab, these are the Korean number words you’ll use the most. Whether you’re asking for a table for two or asking for “one of those please,” we often use smaller numbers in everyday life. After all, these are the numbers you’ll use most often. Let’s start with the basics, Korean numbers 1 through 10. Numbers in Korean 1- 10: Counting in Korean
It will help immensely with your pronunciation.Īnd here's a quick video I made on the topic:
After all, we use numbers in most conversations! So while it’s a lot to learn, it’s easy to pick up and remember because you’ll use it often.īy the way, I highly suggest you learn how to read Korean hangul before getting started. Learning Korean numbers and counting will help you level up your Korean skills and speak with ease.
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