Korean alphabet for beginners: Hangul letters and sounds
Hangul is the writing system used for Korean. Start with a few consonants and vowels, then see how they fit together in syllable blocks. Use this guide with the letter cards below.
Read the Korean beginner guide · Try a free first Korean greeting lesson
Romanized spellings such as giyeok, ga, eo and eu are reading reminders. They cannot represent every Korean sound exactly, so use them alongside Hangul and audio when it is available.
A letter name and a syllable reading are different
ㄱ is called giyeok. The syllable block 가 is read ga. When you read a Korean word, read the block as a syllable instead of saying the consonant’s name.
14 basic Korean consonants
Learn each consonant’s Korean name, then notice how it sounds in a syllable that begins with that letter. The English-letter spelling is a guide, not an exact pronunciation.
| Letter | Korean name | Name in Roman letters | Example syllable |
|---|---|---|---|
| ㄱ | 기역 | giyeok | 가 (ga) |
| ㄴ | 니은 | nieun | 나 (na) |
| ㄷ | 디귿 | digeut | 다 (da) |
| ㄹ | 리을 | rieul | 라 (ra) |
| ㅁ | 미음 | mieum | 마 (ma) |
| ㅂ | 비읍 | bieup | 바 (ba) |
| ㅅ | 시옷 | siot | 사 (sa) |
| ㅇ | 이응 | ieung | 아 (a) |
| ㅈ | 지읒 | jieut | 자 (ja) |
| ㅊ | 치읓 | chieut | 차 (cha) |
| ㅋ | 키읔 | kieuk | 카 (ka) |
| ㅌ | 티읕 | tieut | 타 (ta) |
| ㅍ | 피읖 | pieup | 파 (pa) |
| ㅎ | 히읗 | hieut | 하 (ha) |
10 common beginner vowels
The cards show ten vowels often introduced at the beginning. The paired syllable includes an initial ㅇ, which has no sound at the start of a syllable.
| Vowel | Example syllable | Reading reminder |
|---|---|---|
| ㅏ | 아 | a |
| ㅑ | 야 | ya |
| ㅓ | 어 | eo |
| ㅕ | 여 | yeo |
| ㅗ | 오 | o |
| ㅛ | 요 | yo |
| ㅜ | 우 | u |
| ㅠ | 유 | yu |
| ㅡ | 으 | eu |
| ㅣ | 이 | i |
In Revised Romanization, ㅓ is written eo and ㅡ is written eu. Each spelling represents one Korean vowel; neither is a precise English sound match.
How Hangul syllable blocks work
Korean letters are written together in syllable blocks. A block starts with a consonant and a vowel; it may also have a final consonant underneath.
| Block | Letters inside | Reading reminder |
|---|---|---|
| 가 | ㄱ + ㅏ | ga |
| 나 | ㄴ + ㅏ | na |
| 한 | ㅎ + ㅏ + ㄴ | han |
What does ㅇ sound like?
At the beginning of a syllable, ㅇ is a silent placeholder: ㅇ + ㅏ makes 아 (a).
At the bottom of a syllable, ㅇ is a final consonant pronounced ng, like the end of “sing”, without a separate g sound: 아 + ㅇ makes 앙 (ang).
Try this first reading practice
- Match ㄱ with its letter name, giyeok.
- Read 가 as one syllable, ga; do not read it as the letter name giyeok plus a.
- Compare 가 and 나, then tap a card above to hear it if a Korean voice is available on your device.
Official references
These National Institute of Korean Language references explain Hangul structure, vowel forms and Korean Romanization.
Ready to read a first greeting?
Continue with a short, free Korean greeting lesson with English guidance.
Try the free first greeting Read the Korean beginner guide