Hangul Consonants

A1 — 문자

Hangul consonants: 14 basic + 5 double consonants

Can recognize and pronounce all 19 Hangul consonants including the lax/aspirated/tense distinction

Examples

가방이 있어요. — There is a bag.
코가 커요. — The nose is big.
빵을 사요. — I buy bread.
하늘이 파래요. — The sky is blue.

Writing systemA1

Hangul Consonants

Hangul consonants: 14 basic + 5 double consonants

Learning Goal

Can recognize and pronounce all 19 Hangul consonants including the lax/aspirated/tense distinction

Exam Skills:ListeningReading

Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?

가방이 있어요.

There is a bag.

코가 커요.

The nose is big.

빵을 사요.

I buy bread.

하늘이 파래요.

The sky is blue.

Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?

한글 자음 — Hangul Consonants

Korean uses the Hangul writing system, invented in 1443. There are 14 basic consonants and 5 double (tense) consonants.

Letter	Name	Sound	Example
ㄱ	기역	g/k	가방 (bag)
ㄴ	니은	n	나라 (country)
ㄷ	디귿	d/t	다리 (bridge)
ㄹ	리을	r/l	라면 (ramen)
ㅁ	미음	m	마을 (village)
ㅂ	비읍	b/p	바다 (sea)
ㅅ	시옷	s	사람 (person)
ㅇ	이응	silent / ng	아이 (child)
ㅈ	지읒	j	자리 (seat)
ㅊ	치읓	ch	차 (tea/car)
ㅋ	키읔	k (aspirated)	코 (nose)
ㅌ	티읕	t (aspirated)	토끼 (rabbit)
ㅍ	피읖	p (aspirated)	포도 (grape)
ㅎ	히읗	h	하늘 (sky)

Three-way distinction: Korean consonants come in sets of three — lax (ㄱ,ㄷ,ㅂ,ㅈ), aspirated (ㅋ,ㅌ,ㅍ,ㅊ), and tense/double (ㄲ,ㄸ,ㅃ,ㅉ,ㅆ). The tense consonants ㄲ,ㄸ,ㅃ,ㅉ,ㅆ are pronounced with a glottal tension — no puff of air, stiff throat.

ㅇ rule: At the start of a syllable ㅇ is silent (placeholder). At the end of a syllable (받침) it sounds like ng.

Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises

Practice Exercises

Learners confuse the three-way lax/aspirated/tense distinction (ㄱ vs ㅋ vs ㄲ), which does not exist in most European languages. 🇬🇧 English speakers: English only distinguishes voiced/voiceless (b/p, d/t, g/k). The tense consonants (ㄲ,ㄸ,ㅃ) have no English equivalent — they require glottal tension without aspiration.

Common Error Patterns

Confused lax, aspirated, and tense consonants

Practice the three-way distinction: ㄱ (lax, soft g) vs ㅋ (aspirated, strong k) vs ㄲ (tense, stiff throat)

Misunderstood ㅇ as a consonant sound at syllable start

ㅇ is silent at the start of a syllable (placeholder) but sounds like 'ng' at the end (받침)

가방이 있어요.

There is a bag.

ㄱ (giyeok) sounds like 'g' at the start of a word: 가방 (gabang) = bag.

코가 커요.

The nose is big.

ㅋ (kieuk) is the aspirated version of ㄱ — pronounced with a strong puff of air: 코 (ko) = nose.

빵을 사요.

I buy bread.

ㅃ (ssang-bieup) is the tense/double version of ㅂ — no air puff, throat is stiff: 빵 (ppang) = bread.

하늘이 파래요.

The sky is blue.

ㅎ (hieut) sounds like English 'h': 하늘 (haneul) = sky. ㅇ at the start of 이 is silent — it's just a placeholder.

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1. Hangul and pronunciation

Frequently asked questions

When do you use Hangul Consonants?: Korean uses the Hangul writing system, invented in 1443. There are 14 basic consonants and 5 double (tense) consonants .
How do you form Hangul Consonants?: Three-way distinction: Korean consonants come in sets of three — lax (ㄱ,ㄷ,ㅂ,ㅈ), aspirated (ㅋ,ㅌ,ㅍ,ㅊ), and tense/double (ㄲ,ㄸ,ㅃ,ㅉ,ㅆ). The tense consonants ㄲ,ㄸ,ㅃ,ㅉ,ㅆ are pronounced with a glottal tension — no puff of air, stiff throat. ㅇ rule: At the start of a syllable ㅇ is silent (placeholder). At the end of a syllable (받침) it sounds like ng .
What are common mistakes with Hangul Consonants?: Learners confuse the three-way lax/aspirated/tense distinction (ㄱ vs ㅋ vs ㄲ), which does not exist in most European languages. 🇬🇧 English speakers: English only distinguishes voiced/voiceless (b/p, d/t, g/k). The tense consonants (ㄲ,ㄸ,ㅃ) have no English equivalent — they require glottal tension without aspiration.

Letter

Name

Sound

Example

ㄱ

기역

g/k

가방 (bag)

ㄴ

니은

나라 (country)

ㄷ

디귿

d/t

다리 (bridge)

ㄹ

리을

r/l

라면 (ramen)

ㅁ

미음

마을 (village)

ㅂ

비읍

b/p

바다 (sea)

ㅅ

시옷

사람 (person)

ㅇ

이응

silent / ng

아이 (child)

ㅈ

지읒

자리 (seat)

ㅊ

치읓

차 (tea/car)

ㅋ

키읔

k (aspirated)

코 (nose)

ㅌ

티읕

t (aspirated)

토끼 (rabbit)

ㅍ

피읖

p (aspirated)

포도 (grape)

ㅎ

히읗

하늘 (sky)

Frequently asked questions

When do you use Hangul Consonants?

Korean uses the Hangul writing system, invented in 1443. There are 14 basic consonants and 5 double (tense) consonants .

How do you form Hangul Consonants?

Three-way distinction: Korean consonants come in sets of three — lax (ㄱ,ㄷ,ㅂ,ㅈ), aspirated (ㅋ,ㅌ,ㅍ,ㅊ), and tense/double (ㄲ,ㄸ,ㅃ,ㅉ,ㅆ). The tense consonants ㄲ,ㄸ,ㅃ,ㅉ,ㅆ are pronounced with a glottal tension — no puff of air, stiff throat. ㅇ rule: At the start of a syllable ㅇ is silent (placeholder). At the end of a syllable (받침) it sounds like ng .

What are common mistakes with Hangul Consonants?

Learners confuse the three-way lax/aspirated/tense distinction (ㄱ vs ㅋ vs ㄲ), which does not exist in most European languages. 🇬🇧 English speakers: English only distinguishes voiced/voiceless (b/p, d/t, g/k). The tense consonants (ㄲ,ㄸ,ㅃ) have no English equivalent — they require glottal tension without aspiration.