How to Pronounce Korean Hangul386

Korean Hangul is a unique and beautiful writing system that is used to write the Korean language. It is a phonetic alphabet, meaning that each letter represents a specific sound. This makes it relatively easy to learn how to pronounce Korean words, even if you are not familiar with the language.

The Basic Vowels

There are 21 vowels in Korean Hangul. The basic vowels are: ㅏ (a), ㅓ (eo), ㅗ (o), ㅜ (u), ㅡ (eu), ㅣ (i).

Hangul
Romanization
IPA
Example

ㅏ
a
/a/
안녕하세요 (annyeonghaseyo, hello)

ㅓ
eo
/ʌ/
어떡해 (eotteokhae, what to do)

ㅗ
o
/o/
오빠 (oppa, older brother)

ㅜ
u
/u/
우리 (uri, we)

ㅡ
eu
/ɯ/
을 (eul, object marker)

ㅣ
i
/i/
이 (i, this)

The Diphthongs

In addition to the basic vowels, there are also 11 diphthongs in Korean Hangul. A diphthong is a combination of two vowels that are pronounced together as a single syllable. The diphthongs are: diphthongs are: ㅐ (ae), ㅒ (yae), ㅔ (e), ㅖ (ye), ㅘ (wa), ㅙ (wae), ㅚ (oe), ㅝ (wo), ㅞ (we), ㅟ (wi), ㅢ (ui).

Hangul
Romanization
IPA
Example

ㅐ
ae
/ɛ/
개 (gae, dog)

ㅒ
yae
/jɛ/
얘 (yae, hey)

ㅔ
e
/e/
세상 (sesang, world)

ㅖ
ye
/je/
예쁘다 (yeppeuda, pretty)

ㅘ
wa
/wa/
방 (bang, room)

ㅙ
wae
/wɛ/
왜 (wae, why)

ㅚ
oe
/ø/
ㅚ (oe, wide)

ㅝ
wo
/wo/
ㅝ (wo, bubbling)

ㅞ
we
/we/
왜 (wae, why)

ㅟ
wi
/wi/
ㅟ (wi, wide)

ㅢ
ui
/ɰi/
의자 (uij