You finished this day
Breathy consonants
Today's four consonants come with a puff of air: ㅋ, ㅌ, ㅍ and ㅊ. Each has a plain partner you already know, and telling the pairs apart is the main listening skill for Korean consonants. By the end you can read 커피 (keopi), 'coffee', and 기차 (gicha), 'train'.
The breathy letters continue the rule from day 3: add a stroke, add force. ㄱ becomes ㅋ, ㄷ becomes ㅌ and ㅈ becomes ㅊ, while ㅍ completes the lip family of ㅁ, ㅂ and ㅍ. The added force here is aspiration, a strong burst of air after the consonant, stronger than the k in English 'kite'. Hold your hand in front of your mouth: 카 should push air against it, and 가 should barely stir it. Korean speakers also start the vowel after a breathy consonant on a higher pitch than after a plain one, and that pitch difference is often the clearest thing to listen for.
ㅋ 키읔
- Sound
- k, as in 카
- How it sounds
- A k with a strong puff of air, like the k in 'kite' said with force. At the end of a block it is an unreleased k.
- Memory hook
- ㅋ is ㄱ with a stroke through the middle: the same place at the back of the tongue, with breath added.
- Watch for
- Not pushing out enough air, so that 코 'nose' and 고 blur together.
ㅌ 티읕
- Sound
- t, as in 타
- How it sounds
- A t with a strong puff of air. At the end of a block it is an unreleased t.
- Memory hook
- ㅌ is ㄷ with a stroke across the middle: the tongue-tip stop, now with breath behind it.
- Watch for
- Aspirating it too weakly, so that 타 and 다 sound the same to a Korean ear.
ㅍ 피읖
- Sound
- p, as in 파
- How it sounds
- A p with a strong puff of air. At the end of a block it is a p with the lips closed and held.
- Memory hook
- It completes the lip family ㅁ, ㅂ, ㅍ, each one a step stronger than the last. Picture two lips pressed together with the air building up between them.
- Watch for
- Saying it with the lower lip on the top teeth, like an f, in loanwords such as 커피 'coffee', which has a breathy p.
ㅊ 치읓
- Sound
- ch, as in 차
- How it sounds
- A ch with a strong puff of air, more breath than in English 'church'. At the end of a block it is an unreleased t.
- Memory hook
- ㅊ is ㅈ with one more stroke on top, and the extra stroke is the extra breath.
- Watch for
- Saying it with too little breath, so that it cannot be told apart from ㅈ.
Read these
Every word here uses only letters you have met so far. Say it before you press the speaker.
Write today's letters
- Top to bottom, left to right.
- Horizontal strokes are written left to right, vertical ones top to bottom.
- Many corners are turned without lifting the pen, so ㄱ and ㄴ are each a single stroke.
- ㅇ is drawn anticlockwise, starting from the top.
- Vowels follow the same order: ㅏ and ㅜ start with the long line, while ㅓ and ㅗ start with the short stroke.
- In a block, write the consonant first, then the vowel, then any final consonant.
Two passes each: trace it with the guide on, then write it from memory with the guide off and let the guide come back over your strokes. The second pass is the one that teaches you anything.
Check yourself
8 questions. Get 5 right to finish the day.