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Korean — Hangul & Pronunciation Rules flashcards

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The Hangul alphabet and how Korean is really pronounced: plain, aspirated and tense consonants, compound vowels, syllable blocks, the seven final sounds, and the sound-change rules (liaison, nasalization, ㅎ, palatalization, tensing).

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Learn deck · part of TOPIK I (Korean) · written against: Every word and sense of the TOPIK I list in the TOPIK public vocabulary list (2015; 1,847 entries, 1,793 distinct spellings), with grammar patterns and in-context cloze; spelling and spacing per the Standard Korean Dictionary, romanization per the Revised Romanization of Korean. Updated 2026-10-10.

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  1. How many basic letters does modern Hangul have, and how are they split?
    24 basic letters: 14 consonants and 10 vowels. Consonants: ㄱ ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ ㅁ ㅂ ㅅ ㅇ ㅈ ㅊ ㅋ ㅌ ㅍ ㅎ. Vowels: ㅏ ㅑ ㅓ ㅕ ㅗ ㅛ ㅜ ㅠ ㅡ ㅣ. Double consonants and compound vowels are built from these.
    Consonants
  2. How do ㅓ and ㅗ differ in sound?
    ㅓ (eo) is an open, unrounded "uh", close to the o in "son"; ㅗ (o) is a rounded o with the lips pushed forward. 거 (geo) and 고 (go) are different syllables, so keep the lips relaxed for ㅓ.
    Vowels
  3. What is the basic structure of a Korean syllable block?
    Initial consonant + vowel, optionally + a final consonant (받침). 가 = ㄱ+ㅏ, 강 = ㄱ+ㅏ+ㅇ, 닭 = ㄷ+ㅏ+ㄺ (a double final). Every block is written as one square character.
    Syllable Blocks
  4. What are the seven sounds a final consonant (받침) can have?
    ㄱ ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ ㅁ ㅂ ㅇ — roughly k, n, t, l, m, p, ng, all unreleased.

    Every 받침, whatever letter is written, is pronounced as one of these seven at the end of a word or before a consonant, except where an ㅎ combines with the neighboring consonant (좋다 [조타], 축하 [추카], 닿소 [다쏘]).
    Final Consonants
  5. What is 연음 (liaison)?
    When a syllable with a 받침 is followed by one starting with the silent ㅇ, the 받침 usually moves over and is pronounced as the next syllable's first sound. 음악 [으막], 한국어 [한구거], 옷이 [오시].
    Liaison
  6. Why is 신라 pronounced [실라]?
    ㄴ next to ㄹ (before or after it) usually becomes [ㄹ] — liquid assimilation. Also 연락 [열락], 한류 [할류], 설날 [설랄].

    Watch out: Some Sino-Korean compounds go the other way and turn the ㄹ into [ㄴ]: 생산량 [생산냥], 의견란 [의견난].
    ㄹ Assimilation
  7. How are 좋다 and 많고 pronounced?
    [조타] and [만코]. ㅎ (alone or in ㄶ ㅀ) followed by ㄱ ㄷ ㅈ merges with it into the aspirated ㅋ ㅌ ㅊ: 놓지 [노치].
    ㅎ Rules
  8. Why is 같이 pronounced [가치]?
    Final ㄷ or ㅌ followed by the vowel 이 (in a suffix or particle) becomes [ㅈ] or [ㅊ] — palatalization. Also 굳이 [구지], 해돋이 [해도지], 붙이다 [부치다].
    Palatalisation
  9. Why is 학교 pronounced [학꾜]?
    After a [ㄱ ㄷ ㅂ] final sound, a following ㄱ ㄷ ㅂ ㅅ ㅈ becomes tense. Also 식당 [식땅], 학생 [학쌩], 잡지 [잡찌], 옷장 [옫짱].
    Tensing
  10. In Revised Romanization, when is ㄱ written g and when k?
    g before a vowel, k before a consonant or at the end of a word. The same pattern gives ㄷ d/t and ㅂ b/p: 대구 Daegu, 독도 Dokdo, 부산 Busan.
    Romanization

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More TOPIK I (Korean) decks

Grammar PatternsCore Vocabulary, Part 1Core Vocabulary, Part 2Core Vocabulary, Part 3Core Vocabulary, Part 4Core Vocabulary, Part 5Core Vocabulary, Part 6In Context, Part 1Core Vocabulary, Part 7Core Vocabulary, Part 8Core Vocabulary, Part 9Core Vocabulary, Part 10Core Vocabulary, Part 11In Context, Part 2Core Vocabulary, Part 12Core Vocabulary, Part 13Core Vocabulary, Part 14Core Vocabulary, Part 15Core Vocabulary, Part 16In Context, Part 3Core Vocabulary, Part 17Core Vocabulary, Part 18Core Vocabulary, Part 19Core Vocabulary, Part 20Core Vocabulary, Part 21In Context, Part 4Practice Questions

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About these cards

Review status: Second-reader reviewed, with corrections applied.

Checked against:

  • Pronunciation rules checked against the Standard Pronunciation Rules (표준 발음법, Part 2 of the Standard Language Regulations, 표준어 규정; Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism notice 2017-13, published by the National Institute of Korean Language at korean.go.kr/kornorms) and word pronunciations against the Standard Korean Dictionary (표준국어대사전); romanization against the Revised Romanization of Korean (2000, as amended in 2014). Reference only; all wording and examples are original.

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