Learning to Count in Korean
Why Learn Korean Numbers?
Learning to count in Korean is an essential skill for anyone who is interested in the language and culture. Knowing the numbers will help you to navigate everyday situations, like buying groceries, telling time, and counting money. It is also useful for basic counting activities like counting people, objects, or animals.
Basic Korean Numbers
The basic Korean numbers are pretty simple to learn. They are similar to the Chinese and Japanese systems, with some minor differences. Here are the numbers from 1 to 10 in Korean:
- 하나 (hana) - 1
- 둘 (dool) - 2
- 셋 (set) - 3
- 넷 (net) - 4
- 다섯 (dasut) - 5
- 여섯 (yeoseot) - 6
- 일곱 (ilgop) - 7
- 여덟 (yeodeol) - 8
- 아홉 (ahop) - 9
- 열 (yeol) - 10
Forming Bigger Numbers
When you want to say bigger numbers, you need to use the Korean words for the tens, hundreds, and thousands. Here are the numbers from 11 to 99 in Korean:
- 열하나 (yeol hana) - 11
- 열둘 (yeol dool) - 12
- 열셋 (yeol set) - 13
- 열넷 (yeol net) - 14
- 열다섯 (yeol dasut) - 15
- 열여섯 (yeol yeoseot) - 16
- 열일곱 (yeol ilgop) - 17
- 열여덟 (yeol yeodeol) - 18
- 열아홉 (yeol ahop) - 19
- 스물 (seumul) - 20
- 스물하나 (seumul hana) - 21
- 스물둘 (seumul dool) - 22
- and so on...
Counting by Tens and Hundreds
When you are counting by tens or hundreds, you need to use the special words for those numbers. Here are the numbers from 20 to 99 in Korean:
- 스물 (seumul) - 20
- 서른 (seoreun) - 30
- 마흔 (maheun) - 40
- 쉰 (swin) - 50
- 예순 (yesun) - 60
- 일흔 (ilheun) - 70
- 여든 (yeodeun) - 80
- 아흔 (aheun) - 90
Putting it All Together
Now that you know the basics, you can start to put the numbers together to form bigger numbers. Here are some examples of numbers in Korean:
- 스물다섯 (seumul dasut) - 25
- 마흔삼 (maheun sam) - 43
- 예순칠 (yesun chil) - 67
- 아흔구 (aheun gu) - 94
Now that you have the basics of counting in Korean, you can start to practice and use it in everyday conversations. Good luck!
