Nineteen consonants can sit in the initial slot: fourteen basic, and five formed by doubling one of the basic ones.
The fourteen basic
| ㄱ | ㄴ | ㄷ | ㄹ | ㅁ | ㅂ | ㅅ | ㅇ | ㅈ | ㅊ | ㅋ | ㅌ | ㅍ | ㅎ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| g | n | d | r | m | b | s | – | j | ch | k | t | p | h |
ㅇ has no sound in the initial slot — it is the placeholder from
lesson 101. It does have a sound in
the final slot, where it is [ng], and that is covered in
lesson 104.
The five double
| ㄲ | ㄸ | ㅃ | ㅆ | ㅉ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| kk | tt | pp | ss | jj |
| ㄱ+ㄱ | ㄷ+ㄷ | ㅂ+ㅂ | ㅅ+ㅅ | ㅈ+ㅈ |
There is no F, R, V or Z in Korean. Not “hard to pronounce” — absent. Loanwords route them through the nearest Korean sound, so coffee becomes 커피 (with ㅍ), video becomes 비디오 (with ㅂ), and pizza becomes 피자 (with ㅈ). ㄹ covers both English r and l, and which one it sounds like depends on where it sits in the word.
Grouped by where they are made
The shapes are not decorative — a consonant’s letter is a sketch of the mouth position that produces it, and consonants sharing a position share a shape.
| Group | Letters | Made with |
|---|---|---|
| Velar 아음 | ㄱ [g] ㅋ [k] ㄲ [kk], ㅇ (silent) | Back of the tongue against the soft palate |
| Alveolar 설음 | ㄴ [n], ㄷ [d] ㅌ [t] ㄸ [tt], ㄹ [r], ㅅ [s] ㅆ [ss] | Tongue tip at the ridge behind the teeth |
| Palatal 치음 | ㅈ [j] ㅊ [ch] ㅉ [jj] | Body of the tongue at the hard palate |
| Bilabial 순음 | ㅁ [m], ㅂ [b] ㅍ [p] ㅃ [pp] | Both lips |
| Guttural 후음 | ㅎ [h] | Throat |
The three-way contrast
This is the part English does not prepare you for. English has a two-way distinction — b vs. p. Korean has three, and they are three different letters, three different words.
| Aspirated | Plain | Tensed |
|---|---|---|
| ㅋ [k] | ㄱ [g] | ㄲ [kk] |
| ㅌ [t] | ㄷ [d] | ㄸ [tt] |
| ㅍ [p] | ㅂ [b] | ㅃ [pp] |
| ㅊ [ch] | ㅈ [j] | ㅉ [jj] |
| — | ㅅ [s] | ㅆ [ss] |
- Plain — the neutral one. Relaxed throat, little breath.
- Aspirated — a puff of air behind it. Written with an extra stroke, which is a fair mnemonic: the extra line is the extra breath.
- Tensed — no breath at all, throat tight, the sound almost clipped. Written doubled.
The classic test is a sheet of paper held in front of your mouth. Aspirated moves it, plain barely does, tensed should not move it at all.
Minimal pairs make the stakes obvious: 달 is moon, 탈 is mask, 딸 is daughter.
Their names
Mostly regular: the consonant with ㅣ after it, then the consonant again as a 받침 under 으. ㄱ, ㄷ and ㅅ are irregular for historical reasons, and are the three worth memorising deliberately.
| Letter | Name | Letter | Name | Letter | Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ㄱ | 기역 | ㅂ | 비읍 | ㅋ | 키읔 |
| ㄴ | 니은 | ㅅ | 시옷 | ㅌ | 티읕 |
| ㄷ | 디귿 | ㅇ | 이응 | ㅍ | 피읖 |
| ㄹ | 리을 | ㅈ | 지읒 | ㅎ | 히읗 |
| ㅁ | 미음 | ㅊ | 치읓 |
The doubles are the basic name with 쌍 (twin) in front:
| ㄲ 쌍기역 | ㄸ 쌍디귿 | ㅃ 쌍비읍 | ㅆ 쌍시옷 | ㅉ 쌍지읒 |
|---|
Work culture: 명함, the name card
명함 [myeong-ham]. The exchange is a small ceremony and people notice when it is performed badly.
- Stand up straight. Not seated, not leaning.
- Both hands. Hold the card by its corners, one hand each side.
- The junior offers first. If you are the more junior person in the room — by title, not by age — your card goes out first. Waiting to be offered one is the mistake.
- Face the card toward the receiver. They should be able to read it as it arrives, which means it is upside down from where you are standing.
- Read the card you are given. Actually read it, for a beat. Then set it on the table in front of you for the rest of the meeting — do not pocket it immediately, and never write on it in front of them.
Said as you hand it over:
_______입니다.
[im-ni-da]
I'm _______.