Consonants

14 Basic Consonants

Hangul consonants were designed based on the shape of speech organs. Click on each card to learn more.

g/kㄱ

기역

Flip Card

ㄱ

기역g/k / g (initial) / k (final)

ㄱ의 모양은 혀뿌리가 목구멍을 막는 모습을 본뜬 것입니다.

Examples

가방[gabang]

bag

고양이[goyangi]

cat

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nㄴ

니은

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ㄴ

니은n / n

ㄴ의 모양은 혀가 윗잇몸에 닿는 모습을 본뜬 것입니다.

Examples

나무[namu]

tree

눈[nun]

eye / snow

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d/tㄷ

디귿

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ㄷ

디귿d/t / d (initial) / t (final)

ㄷ은 ㄴ에 획을 더해 만든 글자로, 더 강한 소리를 냅니다.

Examples

다리[dari]

leg / bridge

도시[dosi]

city

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r/lㄹ

리을

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ㄹ

리을r/l / r (initial) / l (final)

ㄹ의 모양은 혀가 구부러지는 모습을 본뜬 것입니다.

Examples

라면[ramyeon]

ramen

사랑[sarang]

love

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mㅁ

미음

Flip Card

ㅁ

미음m / m

ㅁ의 모양은 다문 입의 모습을 본뜬 것입니다.

Examples

물[mul]

water

마음[maeum]

heart / mind

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b/pㅂ

비읍

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ㅂ

비읍b/p / b (initial) / p (final)

ㅂ은 ㅁ에 획을 더해 만든 글자로, 입술을 터뜨리는 소리입니다.

Examples

바다[bada]

sea

밥[bap]

rice / meal

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sㅅ

시옷

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ㅅ

시옷s / s (initial) / t (final)

ㅅ의 모양은 이빨의 모습을 본뜬 것입니다.

Examples

사람[saram]

person

소리[sori]

sound

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ng / silentㅇ

이응

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ㅇ

이응ng / silent / silent (initial) / ng (final)

ㅇ의 모양은 목구멍의 모습을 본뜬 것입니다. 초성에서는 소리가 없습니다.

Examples

아이[ai]

child

오늘[oneul]

today

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jㅈ

지읒

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ㅈ

지읒j / j (initial) / t (final)

ㅈ은 ㅅ에 획을 더해 만든 글자입니다.

Examples

지구[jigu]

earth

집[jip]

house

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chㅊ

치읓

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ㅊ

치읓ch / ch (initial) / t (final)

ㅊ은 ㅈ에 획을 더해 만든 글자로, 거센소리입니다.

Examples

친구[chingu]

friend

책[chaek]

book

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kㅋ

키읔

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ㅋ

키읔k / k

ㅋ은 ㄱ에 획을 더해 만든 글자로, 거센소리입니다.

Examples

커피[keopi]

coffee

코[ko]

nose

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tㅌ

티읕

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ㅌ

티읕t / t

ㅌ은 ㄷ에 획을 더해 만든 글자로, 거센소리입니다.

Examples

토끼[tokki]

rabbit

택시[taeksi]

taxi

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pㅍ

피읖

Flip Card

ㅍ

피읖p / p

ㅍ은 ㅂ에 획을 더해 만든 글자로, 거센소리입니다.

Examples

포도[podo]

grape

피자[pija]

pizza

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hㅎ

히읗

Flip Card

ㅎ

히읗h / h (initial) / silent (final)

ㅎ의 모양은 목구멍에서 나오는 숨의 모습을 본뜬 것입니다.

Examples

하늘[haneul]

sky

한글[hangeul]

Korean alphabet

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What Are Consonants?

Consonants in Korean are called "자음" (jaeum), literally meaning "child sounds." They need to combine with vowels to produce complete sounds. While similar to English consonants in concept, Hangul consonants were created in a uniquely systematic way.

Hangul has 14 basic consonants. Once you learn these 14 consonants, you've mastered half of Hangul. Combined with 10 vowels, these 24 basic characters can express all Korean sounds.

What's remarkable is that these 14 consonants weren't created randomly. King Sejong and scholars observed how people produce sounds using their mouth, tongue, and throat, then designed letters based on those shapes.

The Five Basic Consonants

All Hangul consonants originate from five basic consonants. Each of these letters was designed based on the shape of different speech organs.

ㄱ

Giyeok (g/k)

Shape of tongue root blocking the throat

ㄱ represents a "velar sound" made when the back of the tongue touches the soft palate. The letters ㅋ (kieuk) and ㄲ (ssang-giyeok) are derived from this basic shape.

ㄴ

Nieun (n)

Shape of tongue touching the upper gum

ㄴ represents a "lingual sound" made when the tongue tip touches the upper gum. The letters ㄷ (digeut), ㅌ (tieut), and ㄹ (rieul) are derived from this shape.

ㅁ

Mieum (m)

Shape of the lips

ㅁ represents a "labial sound" made when both lips meet. The letters ㅂ (bieup) and ㅍ (pieup) are derived from this shape.

ㅅ

Siot (s)

Shape of the teeth

ㅅ represents a "dental sound" made when air passes between the tongue and teeth. The letters ㅈ (jieut) and ㅊ (chieut) are derived from this shape.

ㅇ

Ieung (ng/silent)

Shape of the throat

ㅇ represents a "guttural sound" based on the round shape of the throat. It's silent at the beginning of a syllable but makes an "ng" sound at the end. The letter ㅎ (hieut) is derived from this shape.

The Stroke Addition Principle

One of Hangul's most remarkable features is the rule: "adding strokes makes sounds stronger." When you add strokes to basic consonants, they become stronger or aspirated sounds.

Thanks to this rule, you can guess the sound intensity just by looking at the letter shape. More strokes generally mean a stronger sound.

ㄱ Family

ㄱ→ㅋ→ㄲ

Plain → Aspirated → Tense (ㄲ is a double consonant)

ㄴ Family

ㄴ→ㄷ→ㅌ

Nasal → Plain → Aspirated

ㅁ Family

ㅁ→ㅂ→ㅍ

Nasal → Plain → Aspirated

ㅅ Family

ㅅ→ㅈ→ㅊ

Plain → Plain → Aspirated

Consonant Learning Tips

When learning consonants, start by mastering the 5 basic consonants (ㄱ, ㄴ, ㅁ, ㅅ, ㅇ). Once you know these, the rest are just "versions with added strokes."

Observe your mouth shape while making sounds. When you say ㅁ, your lips really do form a square shape, and when you say ㄴ, you can feel your tongue touching your upper gum.

It's more effective to memorize Korean words containing each consonant. For example, remember ㄱ with "가방 (bag)" and ㄴ with "나무 (tree)."

Next Steps

Click on the cards above to see detailed explanations, pronunciation guides, and example words for each consonant. After mastering the basic consonants, move on to learning vowels!