Korean Tight Consonants129

Korean has a set of consonant sounds that are pronounced with a tight, almost choked off, articulation. These consonants are known as "tight consonants" or "tense consonants." They are produced by constricting the vocal tract more tightly than for the corresponding lax consonants, resulting in a higher pitch and a more intense sound.

There are six tight consonants in Korean: ㄱ (g), ㄷ (d), ㅂ (b), ㅅ (s), ㅈ (j), and ㅊ (ch). These consonants are distinguished from their lax counterparts (ㅋ (k), ㅌ (t), ㅍ (p), ㅎ (h), ㅉ (jj), and ㅌㅌ (tt)) by the presence of a glottal stop, a brief closure of the vocal cords, in their articulation.

The glottal stop is produced by bringing the vocal cords together and then releasing them abruptly. This creates a brief moment of silence, followed by the release of the consonant. The glottal stop is an important part of the pronunciation of tight consonants in Korean, and it is what gives them their characteristic "tight" sound.

Tight consonants are used in a variety of words in Korean. Some common examples include:
ㄱ (g): 가다 (gada, "to go"), 거기 (geogi, "there"), 같이 (gathi, "together")
ㄷ (d): 다리 (dari, "leg"), 더위 (deowi, "heat"), 듣다 (deudda, "to hear")
ㅂ (b): 바다 (bada, "sea"), 밥 (bap, "rice"), 부모 (bumo, "parents")
ㅅ (s): 사람 (saram, "person"), 서적 (seojik, "book"), 시간 (sigan, "time")
ㅈ (j): 자다 (jada, "to sleep"), 저기 (jeogi, "over there"), 젖다 (jeokda, "to get wet")
ㅊ (ch): 차 (cha, "car"), 처음 (cheoeum, "beginning"), 칠다 (childa, "to hit")

Tight consonants can also be used to form double consonants, which are pronounced with a longer and more intense articulation. Double consonants are written with two consonant letters, and they are used in a variety of words, including:
ㄲ (kk): 까다 (kkada, "to cut"), 껍데기 (kkeopdegi, "shell")
ㄸ (tt): 딱지 (ttakji, "tag"), 떡볶이 (tteokbokki, "rice cake")
ㅃ (pp): 빼다 (ppaeda, "to pull out"), 뽑기 (ppobgi, "to pick")
ㅆ (ss): 싸다 (ssada, "to be cheap"), 숲 (sup, "forest")
ㅉ (jj): 짜다 (jjada, "to be salty"), 짜기 (jjagi, "to squeeze")
ㅊㅊ (cch): 쪽쪽 (cchocch, "sound of kissing"), 층층 (cchunchchung, "layer")

Tight consonants are an important part of the Korean sound system. They are used in a variety of words, and they can be used to form double consonants. Understanding the pronunciation of tight consonants is essential for speaking and understanding Korean accurately.

2024-11-11

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