L1-02 / 14 min

Basic consonants

자음 기초

Consonants clip the vowel. Start with the plain set. The difference between ㄱ and ㅋ is extra air, not a new tongue shape.

14 consonantsㄱ vs ㅋ14 min

Today’s goal

Build 가 나 다 마 바 사 and hear the puff of air in 카 vs 가.

Letters

Tap a block to hear it.

Words

가

ga · go (stem you will meet later)

나

na · I / me

다

da · all

마

ma · reading block

바

ba · reading block

사

sa · four (Sino) / reading block

카

ka · more air than 가

하나

hana · one (native) — you can read it now

Plain vs aspirated

ㄱ is a soft g/k. ㅋ is the same place in the mouth with a stronger puff (kha). ㄷ/ㅌ, ㅂ/ㅍ, ㅈ/ㅊ work the same way. ㅇ at the start of a syllable is silent. At the end it is the ng in sing.

Sentences

가나

gana · ga-na (reading drill)

나라

nara · country

하나

hana · one

Say it out loud

Your line

가, 카, 하나

ga, ka, hana · Feel the extra air on 카.

Everyday drama line — 뭐? · What? — ㅁ + ㅝ.

Practice these sentences ->