Korean consonants and the sounds they really make
Fourteen shapes, three sound families, and one habit that makes them all easier.
Korean consonants are drawings of the mouth making the sound. That isn't a mnemonic invented by a textbook — it's literally how the alphabet was designed.
Understanding the families is what keeps you from hearing 'the same letter three times'.
Get the free consonant tracing worksheet with the sound each letter really makes.
The five base shapes
ㄱ is the tongue arched at the back. ㄴ is the tongue tip at the ridge behind your teeth. ㅁ is your closed lips. ㅅ is the narrow gap air hisses through. ㅇ is the open throat.
Every other consonant is one of these with a line added.
Plain, tense and aspirated
This is the part romanisation ruins. ㄱ, ㄲ and ㅋ all become 'k' or 'g' in English spelling, but they're three distinct sounds: relaxed, squeezed-tight, and puffed with air.
Hold a sheet of paper in front of your mouth. It shouldn't move for ㄲ, should twitch slightly for ㄱ, and should flap for ㅋ. That physical test teaches it faster than any explanation.
- Plain: ㄱ ㄷ ㅂ ㅈ ㅅ — relaxed, soft, in-between sounds.
- Tense: ㄲ ㄸ ㅃ ㅉ ㅆ — tight throat, no puff of air.
- Aspirated: ㅋ ㅌ ㅍ ㅊ — a clear burst of breath.
Consonants that change position
ㄱ at the start of 가방 is closer to a soft k. Between vowels it voices to g. At the end of a block it's an unreleased stop — your tongue gets into position and simply stops.
ㄹ is the famous one: somewhere between an l and a light r, made with a quick tap of the tongue. Say the American 'butter' quickly and you've already made it.
Common questions
Why does the same word get spelled with g and k in English?+
Because ㄱ genuinely sits between them. Romanisation systems just pick a side depending on position.
Do I need tense consonants right away?+
You need to recognise them in writing immediately. Producing them perfectly can take months, and that's fine.
Both worksheets, free
The 4-page Hangul alphabet worksheet and the 2-page syllable bonus, emailed in seconds.