• Step 1: Introduction
• Step 2: Letters 1
• Step 3: Letters 2

• Step 4: Letters 3
• Step 5: Finals
• Step 6: Letters 4

• Additional practice
• Intermediate
• Advanced

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ㅐ (vowel)

ㅅ (consonant)

For North Americans and Brits, this the "e" in dress. For Australians and New Zealanders, this is the "a" in trap. For full information about this letter, see ㅐ.

This is an "s" sound. It can be aspirated or unaspirated. When combined with the vowel ㅣ, ㅑ, ㅒ, ㅕ, ㅖ, ㅛ or ㅠ, it is pronounced with an "sh" sound. You can also bunch up your tongue like you are forming the "y" in "yodel." (For Mandarin speakers, this is like the "x" in "xin" in Hanyu Pinyin.) For full information about this letter, see ㅅ.

ㅔ (vowel)

ㅂ (consonant)

This sound used to sound different from ㅐ. The sound is not reliably distinguished anymore, but the vowel length can be shorter in length than ㅐ and a little more tense, too. For North Americans and Brits, this is like the "a" in face, but clipped. Most speakers combine an "eh" and an "ee" together. Just use the first part. For Australians and New Zealanders, this is the "e" in dress. For full information about this letter, see ㅔ.

This is pronounced like the "p" in trap. It is unaspirated like a b, but voiceless like a p. However, when found between vowels the sound is voiced and makes a /b/ sound. For full information about this letter, see ㅂ.

ㅓ (vowel)

ㅈ (consonant)

There is no exact sound from English to which ㅓ may be compared. Its sound is somewhere between an "uh" sound and the 오 sound you previously learned. In some dialects it is like the sound in <caught>. Try to keep it unrounded or loosely rounded. Listen to the audio file carefully! IPA symbol: /ʌ/. For full information about this letter, see ㅓ.

This is pronounced like the "ch" at the end of "match." It is not aspirated like the "ch" in "cheek," but between vowels, it is voiced like the "dg" in "badger." For full information about this letter, see ㅈ.

ㅡ (vowel)

ㄹ (consonant)

There is no exact sound to which ㅡ may be compared in English, so listen to the audio file carefully. Make your mouth say the "u" in "flute" or the "oo" in "goose," but do not round your lips. This is close to what you want. For full information about this letter, see ㅡ.

This sound is capable of making both an R and an L sound. Native Korean words never begin with ㄹ, so expect to hear "l" or a flap "r" or even an "n." At the end of words and before consonants, it is an "l." When repeated it is an "l" held for a longer amount of time. Between vowels it is a "flap r." Do note that this is not exactly the English "r," which is usually [ɹ~ɻ]. This is a flap R, [ɾ], like the "d" in "rider" or the "t" in "writer" as spoken by Australians and North Americans. It is identical to the "r" in the older Scottish accent and in older Received Pronunciation it was the "r" between vowels. Americans once mocked the Brits as being "veddy British" because their "r" in "very" was like the American "d" in "Teddy." For Spanish speakers, it is similar to the lone "r" in "caro." For full information about this letter, see ㄹ.