- 1 - 일 - eel
- 2 - 이 - ee
- 3 - 삼 - sam
- 4 - 사 - sa
- 5 - 오 - o
- 6 - 육 - yook
- 7 - 칠 - chil
- 8 - 팔 - pal
- 9 - 구 - goo
- 10 - 십 - ship
Resources for further reading:
Did you know that the Korean number system uses two different sets of numbers? The “general number system” (eel, ee, sam, etc) is used for talking about sums of money, telephone numbers, etc. This one is straightforward to build up large numbers – you only need to know one to ten. Twenty is just “two-ten,” 30 is “three-ten.” To help you remember them faster, try to use these words as much as possible in your daily life – even if it’s just in your head!
How to pronounce Korean numbers
Practice Your Pronunciation With Rocket Record
To say eleven, just combine “10” or seep and “1” or eel, and you have ship-eel. Twelve is ship-ee. Easy right? Can you say your telephone number now?
The other number system (hana, dool, set, etc) is for combining a number with an object-specific counter. These are the numbers you would use when counting a specific number of people, objects, or things.
- One
- 하나 - hana
- 하나 - hana
- Two
- 둘 - dool
- 둘 - dool
- Three
- 셋 - set
- 셋 - set
- Four
- 넷 - net
- 넷 - net
- Five
- 다섯 - dasut
- 다섯 - dasut
- Six
- 여섯 - yusut
- 여섯 - yusut
- Seven
- 일곱 - eelgop
- 일곱 - eelgop
- Eight
- 여덟 - yudulb
- 여덟 - yudulb
- Nine
- 아홉 - ahop
- 아홉 - ahop
- Ten
- 열 - yul
Up until the number 19, the straightforward way of building up large numbers that you learned above for the “general number system” is used in this system as well. So “eleven” is “ten” or yul and “one” or hana, yul-hana. “Nineteen” is yul together with the number “nine” or ahop, yul-ahop.
That’s it for this lesson, well done!
Here are a few recommended Korean lessons to try next!
- Falling in love? Let's talk love in Korean.
- Describing where you're from. Let's talk about nationalities in Korean.
- At a Korean restaurant? Try ordering in Korean!
Anyoung hee gaseyo!
Sujung Lee: Rocket Korean