Korean Numbers
Going to the market for groceries? Need to tell someone your age or phone number? Want to be sure you catch the right bus? It’s time to learn Korean numbers! There are so many reasons why you need to be able to count in Korean, and the Rocket Korean team is here to make it easier. Let’s start with the basics - by the end of this lesson you’ll feel confident using the Korean words for numbers 1-10.
- 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
Rocket Record lets you perfect your Korean pronunciation. Just listen to the native speaker audio and then use the microphone icon to record yourself. Once you’re done, you’ll get a score out of 100 on your pronunciation and can listen to your own audio playback. (Use a headset mic for best results.) Problems? Click here!
일
eel
one
이
ee
two
삼
sam
three
사
sa
four
오
oh
five
육
yook
six
칠
chil
seven
팔
pal
eight
구
goo
nine
십
ship
ten
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
- Two - 둘 - dool
- Three - 셋 - set
- Four - 넷 - net
- Five - 다섯 - dasut
- Six - 여섯 - yusut
- Seven - 일곱 - eelgop
- Eight - 여덟 - yudulb
- Nine - 아홉 - ahop
- Ten - 열 - yul
하나
hana
one
둘
dool
two
셋
set
three
넷
net
four
다섯
dasut
five
여섯
yusut
six
일곱
eelgop
seven
여덟
yudulb
eight
아홉
ahop
nine
열
yul
ten
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
Make It Stick With Rocket Reinforcement
Reinforce your learning from this lesson with the Rocket Reinforcement activities!