How to Learn Korean as a Beginner: Hangul, Sounds and Speech Levels

Learn Hangul, the Korean alphabet, before anything else. It has 14 basic consonants and 10 basic vowels, and a few hours of focused study is usually enough to learn them and sound out simple words. Then move on to polite sentences ending in -yo (요), a handful of particles, and the sound rules that make spoken Korean differ from its spelling. Speak from your first week, even if all you can say is hello and your name.

In what order should you learn Korean?

Work through these steps at 30 to 60 minutes a day. The times are rough targets.

When	What to learn	What you can do afterwards
Week 1	The 24 basic letters and how syllable blocks work, then double consonants and combined vowels	Read any Korean word aloud, slowly
Weeks 2 to 6	Present-tense -yo endings, the particles 은/는, 이/가, 을/를, 에 and 에서, the main sound rules	Introduce yourself and say what you do and like
Weeks 7 to 12	Both number systems, the past tense, food and shopping phrases, about 500 words in total	Order food, ask prices, tell the time
Months 4 to 12	The future tense, connecting endings such as -고 (-go, "and") and -아서/-어서 (-aseo/-eoseo, "so, because"), the formal -mnida style	Talk about your day; work toward TOPIK I
Year 2 onward	Dramas and variety shows with Korean subtitles, simple news, casual speech with friends	Follow everyday conversations; work toward TOPIK II

How do Korean letters work?

Korean letters are grouped into syllable blocks. Each block has a consonant, then a vowel, and sometimes one or two final consonants at the bottom. Hangul (한글, spelled Hangeul in the official romanization) has 24 basic letters, 14 consonants and 10 vowels, plus double consonants and combined vowels built from them. King Sejong created it in 1443 and published it in 1446 in a book called Hunminjeongeum, "the correct sounds for teaching the people". Of his original 28 letters, 24 are still in use.

• ㅎ (h) + ㅏ (a) + ㄴ (n) = 한 (han)
• ㄱ (g) + ㅜ (u) + ㄱ (k) = 국 (guk)
• ㅇ (silent) + ㅓ (eo) = 어 (eo)

Together they spell 한국어 (hangugeo), "the Korean language". Tall vowels such as ㅏ, ㅓ and ㅣ sit to the right of the first consonant: 가, 거, 기. Flat vowels such as ㅗ, ㅜ and ㅡ sit below it: 고, 구, 그. A block can't start with a bare vowel, so a silent ㅇ fills the first spot, as in 아, 오 and 이. At the bottom of a block, ㅇ sounds like the "ng" in "sing", as in 강 (gang, river).

The shapes follow a plan. According to the Hunminjeongeum Haerye, the commentary published with the script in 1446, the five basic consonants picture the speech organs making each sound: ㄱ is the back of the tongue blocking the throat, ㄴ the tongue touching the roof of the mouth, ㅁ the mouth, ㅅ a tooth and ㅇ the throat. Adding a stroke gives a related, stronger sound: ㄱ becomes ㅋ, ㄴ becomes ㄷ and then ㅌ, and ㅅ becomes ㅈ and then ㅊ.

The 14 basic consonants

Letter	Romanization	With ㅏ
ㄱ	g / k	가 (ga)
ㄴ	n	나 (na)
ㄷ	d / t	다 (da)
ㄹ	r / l	라 (ra)
ㅁ	m	마 (ma)
ㅂ	b / p	바 (ba)
ㅅ	s	사 (sa)
ㅇ	silent at the start, ng at the end	아 (a)
ㅈ	j	자 (ja)
ㅊ	ch	차 (cha)
ㅋ	k	카 (ka)
ㅌ	t	타 (ta)
ㅍ	p	파 (pa)
ㅎ	h	하 (ha)

The 10 basic vowels

Letter	Romanization	Sounds roughly like
ㅏ	a	"a" in "father"
ㅑ	ya	"ya" in "yard"
ㅓ	eo	"u" in "up"
ㅕ	yeo	"yu" in "yum"
ㅗ	o	"o" in "go", without the w glide at the end
ㅛ	yo	"yo" in "yoga"
ㅜ	u	"oo" in "food"
ㅠ	yu	"you"
ㅡ	eu	"oo" said with your lips spread flat
ㅣ	i	"ee" in "see"

Can you really learn Hangul in a few hours?

You can learn the 24 basic letters and how blocks work in a few hours. Reading at a normal pace takes a few weeks of daily practice. Next come the five double consonants (ㄲ, ㄸ, ㅃ, ㅆ, ㅉ) and the 11 combined vowels, such as ㅐ, ㅔ, ㅘ and ㅝ. The Korean letters page has a recording of each of the 24 basic letters.

Which pronunciation rules trip up beginners?

Korean spelling shows the parts each word is built from, not always how it sounds, so letters change when they meet. These rules matter most at the start:

• There are three kinds of consonant. Korean separates plain, aspirated (with a puff of air) and tense (tight, with no air) sounds: 불 (bul, fire), 풀 (pul, grass), 뿔 (ppul, horn). English has nothing like the tense set, so practise it with audio.
• Plain consonants shift. At the start of a word, ㄱ, ㄷ, ㅂ and ㅈ sound close to k, t, p and ch to English ears. Between vowels they sound like g, d, b and j. That's why English speakers hear "kimchi", even though the official romanization of 김치 is gimchi.
• Only seven sounds can end a syllable. At the end of a syllable, consonants reduce to k, n, t, l, m, p or ng. 옷 (ot, clothes) and 낮 (nat, daytime) both end in a t sound, and 앞 (ap, front) ends in p.
• Final consonants carry over. When the next block starts with a silent ㅇ, the final consonant is pronounced as part of the next syllable: 한국어 is said han-gu-geo, and 음악 (eumak, music) is said eu-mak.
• Some consonants turn nasal. ㅂ before ㄴ becomes m, so 감사합니다 is said gam-sa-ham-ni-da. ㄱ before ㅁ becomes ng, so 한국말 (hangungmal, Korean speech) is said han-gung-mal.
• ㄹ is r or l. Between vowels it's a light tap close to r, as in 나라 (nara, country). At the end of a syllable it's l, as in 서울 (Seoul). Doubled, it's a long l, as in 빨리 (ppalli, quickly).
• ㅅ before ㅣ sounds like "sh". 시간 (sigan, time) sounds closer to "shee-gan".

Two vowel points also confuse beginners. ㅓ (eo) and ㅡ (eu) are each a single sound, even though the romanization uses two letters. And in everyday Seoul speech, ㅐ (ae) and ㅔ (e) usually sound the same, so you have to learn which one each word is spelled with.

How do Korean sentences work?

The verb comes last, and a particle attached to each noun shows its role. The basic order is subject, object, verb, as in Japanese, Hindi and Tamil.

저는 한국어를 공부해요. (Jeoneun hangugeoreul gongbuhaeyo.) I study Korean.

Here 저 (jeo) is "I", 는 marks it as the topic, 한국어 (hangugeo) is "Korean", 를 marks it as the object, and 공부해요 (gongbuhaeyo) is "study". Tense, negation and politeness all attach to the verb, so listen for the last word: 가요 (gayo) is "go", 갔어요 (gasseoyo) is "went", and 안 가요 (an gayo) is "don't go".

Which particles should you learn first?

Start with these five. The first three have two forms, one used after a consonant and one after a vowel.

Particle	What it marks	Example	Meaning
은/는 (eun/neun)	The topic	저는 학생이에요. (Jeoneun haksaengieyo.)	I'm a student.
이/가 (i/ga)	The subject, often new information	비가 와요. (Biga wayo.)	It's raining.
을/를 (eul/reul)	The object	물을 마셔요. (Mureul masyeoyo.)	I drink water.
에 (e)	A destination, a time, or where something is	학교에 가요. (Hakgyoe gayo.)	I'm going to school.
에서 (eseo)	The place where an action happens	집에서 공부해요. (Jibeseo gongbuhaeyo.)	I study at home.

물 (mul, water) ends in a consonant, so it takes 을. 커피 (keopi, coffee) ends in a vowel and takes 를: 커피를 마셔요 (Keopireul masyeoyo), "I drink coffee." The topic and subject particles work much like Japanese は and が. Copy whole sentences until the difference feels natural.

The same consonant-or-vowel choice comes up when you give your name. Add 이에요 (ieyo) after a name that ends in a consonant and 예요 (yeyo) after one that ends in a vowel: 저는 사라예요 (Jeoneun Sarayeyo), "I'm Sara."

Which speech level should you learn first?

Start with the polite -yo style, called haeyoche (해요체). It's the normal way to talk to strangers, shop staff, colleagues and people older than you.

Meaning	Casual (banmal)	Polite -yo (learn first)	Formal
go	가 (ga)	가요 (gayo)	갑니다 (gamnida)
eat	먹어 (meogeo)	먹어요 (meogeoyo)	먹습니다 (meokseumnida)
thank you	고마워 (gomawo)	고마워요 (gomawoyo)	고맙습니다 (gomapseumnida)

Casual speech, banmal (반말), is for close friends your age, younger siblings and children. Using it with a stranger or someone older is rude, even though dramas and songs are full of it. The formal style, ending in -ㅂ니다/-습니다 (-mnida/-seumnida), is what you hear in news broadcasts, presentations and customer service. It also appears in set phrases such as 감사합니다 (gamsahamnida, "thank you"), which you can say to anyone.

Be careful with "you". 너 (neo) is banmal, and 당신 (dangsin) can sound confrontational to a stranger, although married couples use it with each other. Koreans usually say the person's name with 씨 (ssi), use a title such as 선생님 (seonsaengnim, teacher), or leave "you" out.

Why does Korean have two number systems?

Korean kept its own numbers and also borrowed a set from Chinese, and each set has its own jobs. Native Korean numbers, 하나, 둘, 셋 (hana, dul, set), are for counting things, for age and for hours. Sino-Korean numbers, 일, 이, 삼 (il, i, sam), are for dates, money, minutes and phone numbers. Telling the time uses both: 세 시 삼십 분 (se si samsip bun) is 3:30. Native numbers shorten before a counter, so 셋 becomes 세 in 세 시. They also stop at 99, and anything bigger uses Sino-Korean.

Which Korean phrases should you learn first?

All of these are polite enough to use with strangers.

Korean	Romanization	Meaning
안녕하세요	annyeonghaseyo	Hello (polite)
감사합니다	gamsahamnida	Thank you (formal)
네 / 아니요	ne / aniyo	Yes / No
저기요	jeogiyo	Excuse me (to get someone's attention)
죄송합니다	joesonghamnida	I'm sorry (formal)
괜찮아요	gwaenchanayo	It's okay; I'm fine
만나서 반가워요	mannaseo bangawoyo	Nice to meet you (polite)
이거 주세요	igeo juseyo	This one, please
얼마예요?	eolmayeyo?	How much is it?
화장실이 어디예요?	hwajangsiri eodiyeyo?	Where's the restroom?
천천히 말해 주세요	cheoncheonhi malhae juseyo	Please speak slowly
한국어를 배우고 있어요	hangugeoreul baeugo isseoyo	I'm learning Korean

The romanization in this post follows the official Revised Romanization of Korean. It's based on standard pronunciation, so it reflects most sound changes: 감사합니다 is written gamsahamnida, not gamsahapnida. It doesn't mark tense consonants, though, so 먹습니다 is written meokseumnida even though it's said meok-sseum-ni-da.

How should you split a daily study session?

Thirty to sixty minutes a day is enough if you divide it up. One way to do it:

• 10 minutes of review. Flashcards for words and endings, plus anything you misspelled the day before.
• 15 minutes of something new. One ending, particle or group of words, then five sentences of your own that use it.
• 10 minutes of listening. Replay a short drama clip or podcast with Korean subtitles, then shadow it line by line.
• 5 to 10 minutes of dictation. Listen to words you know and write them in Hangul. Your mistakes show which sound rules you haven't absorbed yet.

Twice a week, swap the listening slot for a 10 to 15 minute conversation in polite Korean, such as ordering at a café, taking a taxi or shopping.

How long does it take to learn Korean?

Much longer than Spanish or French. The US State Department's language school, called the Foreign Service Institute (FSI) for decades and now the National Foreign Affairs Training Center, budgets 88 weeks of full-time study, or 2,200 class hours, for Korean. For Spanish and French it budgets 30 weeks. Korean sits in its Category IV, the "super-hard" group for native English speakers, with Arabic, Mandarin, Cantonese and Japanese. Those 88 weeks are the time a student usually needs to reach level 3, general professional proficiency, in speaking and listening on the Interagency Language Roundtable scale (US Department of State, Foreign Language Training).

For a part-time learner, the slow parts are listening at natural speed and choosing the right speech level. With daily practice, simple conversations about yourself, food and directions are realistic within a few months. If you already speak Japanese, or another verb-final language such as Hindi, Tamil or Turkish, Korean grammar will feel familiar.

What is TOPIK?

TOPIK, the Test of Proficiency in Korean, is South Korea's official Korean test for non-native speakers. The National Institute for International Education, part of the Ministry of Education, has run it since 2011. There are two tests. TOPIK I covers listening and reading and awards levels 1 and 2. TOPIK II adds writing and awards levels 3 to 6. A separate speaking test, TOPIK Speaking, began in 2022. Results are valid for two years from the day they're announced, and Korean universities, employers and some visa applications use them (topik.go.kr; overview).

Can you learn Korean for free?

Yes. The Online King Sejong Institute is a free Korean course run by the King Sejong Institute, with video lessons from introductory to advanced level. For Hangul, the Korean letters page lets you hear each basic letter, and Indilingo's free plan includes free minutes of voice conversation with an AI tutor.

Can you learn Korean through Hindi, Spanish or another language?

Yes. Indilingo teaches Korean through any of its 39 languages, so a Spanish speaker gets explanations in Spanish and a Hindi speaker in Hindi. You can ask the AI chat questions in your own language, the app teaches Hangul letter by letter with audio, and the Speak tab has voice conversations with an AI tutor for everyday situations. See why learn Korean if you're still choosing a language, or go to the Learn Korean page and our guide on how to learn a language.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to learn Hanja?

No. Hanja are Chinese characters, and modern Korean is written almost entirely in Hangul. You'll see Hanja now and then in some headlines, names and academic writing, but TOPIK doesn't test them, and you don't need them to speak or read everyday Korean.

How long does it take to learn Korean?

The US State Department budgets 88 weeks of full-time study, about 2,200 class hours, for an English speaker to reach general professional proficiency in speaking and listening. Simple conversations come much sooner, within a few months of daily practice.

Is Korean harder than Japanese?

For English speakers, the State Department rates them the same, at 88 weeks. Hangul is far quicker to learn than kanji, but Korean pronunciation, with its tense consonants and sound changes, takes more practice than Japanese. If you're weighing the two, read why learn Japanese or see the Learn Japanese page.