Bonus: Pronunciation Masterclass (Alphabet & Diphthongs) Flashcards
아
아 (a)<br></br>“ah” as in “father”<br></br>Open your mouth widely and let the sound come from deep in your throat.
어
어 (eo)<br></br>“aw” as in “saw”<br></br>The sound is somewhat between “aw” and “uh”. Lips should be relaxed.
오
오 (o)<br></br>“oh”<br></br>Round your lips slightly, similar to saying “oh” in English.
우
우 (u)<br></br>“oo” as in “food”<br></br>Round your lips more than when pronouncing “oh”.
에
에 (e)<br></br>“ae” as in “bed”<br></br>It’s somewhat between “ae” and “eh”.
ㄱ
ㄱ (g/k)<br></br>“g” as in “go” when at the beginning, “k” when at the end<br></br>Start with the back of your tongue pressed against the soft part of the roof of your mouth.
ㄴ
ㄴ (n)<br></br>“n” as in “no”<br></br>Tongue touches the roof of the mouth, just behind the front teeth.
ㄷ
ㄷ (d/t)<br></br>“d” at the beginning, “t” when at the end<br></br>Similar to “d” in “dog”, but with the tongue touching slightly behind the upper front teeth.
ㄹ
ㄹ (r/l)<br></br>Between “r” and “l”<br></br>Start by flapping your tongue against the roof of your mouth, similar to the Spanish “r”.
ㅁ
ㅁ (m)<br></br>“m” as in “man”<br></br>Lips come together as in English “m”.
와
와 (wa)<br></br>“wah”<br></br>Combination of “오” and “아”. Begin with the “o” shape and glide into the “ah”.
워
워 (wo)<br></br>“waw”<br></br>Combination of “오” and “어”.
웨
웨 (we)<br></br>“way”<br></br>Combination of “오” and “에”.
의
의 (ui)<br></br>Between “ee” and “wi”<br></br>Lips should start rounded and gradually relax.
ㅃ
ㅃ (pp)<br></br>Strong “bb” sound<br></br>Double consonants in Korean are tensed. It’s like a stronger, more forceful sound.
ㅉ
ㅉ (jj)<br></br>Strong “j” sound<br></br>Similar to “jj” in “jazz”, but with more force.
ㄸ
ㄸ (tt)<br></br>Strong “d/t” sound<br></br>A tensed version of ㄷ.
이
이 (i)<br></br>“ee” as in “see”<br></br>Lips are spread wide and teeth are close to each other.
으
으 (eu)<br></br>No exact English equivalent, but close to “eu” in “eureka”<br></br>Lips are slightly forward and rounded, and the tongue is raised towards the back of the mouth.
애
애 (ae)<br></br>“a” as in “hat”
ㅂ
ㅂ (b/p)<br></br>“b” at the beginning of syllables, “p” at the end
ㅅ
ㅅ (s)<br></br>”s” as in “see”.
ㅈ
ㅈ (j)<br></br>“j” as in “jazz” at the beginning, and a bit softer at the end.
ㅊ
ㅊ (ch)<br></br>“ch” as in “chat”.
ㅋ
ㅋ (k)<br></br>“k” as in “keep”<br></br>More aspirated than ㄱ.
ㅌ
ㅌ (t)<br></br>“t” as in “top”<br></br>More aspirated than ㄷ.
ㅍ
ㅍ (p)<br></br>“p” as in “pop”<br></br>More aspirated than ㅂ.
ㅎ
ㅎ (h)<br></br>“h” as in “hello”.
ㅆ
ㅆ (ss)<br></br>Strong “s” sound<br></br>It’s like a hissing sound, tensed.
ㄲ
ㄲ (gg/kk)<br></br>Strong “g/k” sound<br></br>A tensed version of ㄱ.
ㅂ
ㅂ (bb/pp)<br></br>Strong “b/p” sound<br></br>A tensed version of ㅂ.
외
외 (oe)<br></br>“weh” or “way”
위
위 (wi)<br></br>“wee”.
