Hangul alphabet chart: Korean consonants and vowels
Start reading Korean with the 14 basic consonants and 10 basic vowels, block-building examples, and a short recognition exercise.
Begin with 14 basic consonants and 10 basic vowels. Combine a starting consonant with a vowel to make a syllable. Then learn the additional consonant and vowel forms used in modern Korean.
Read a small set before memorizing the whole chart
Start with ㄴ, ㅁ, ㅅ and the vowel ㅏ. Together they make 나, 마, 사. Each square is a syllable, and the individual strokes belong to letters inside it. Change only one letter at a time: 나 becomes 너 when ㅏ changes to ㅓ. This gives you a way to read unfamiliar blocks instead of memorizing each block as a picture.
The 14 basic consonants
The basic set is ㄱ ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ ㅁ ㅂ ㅅ ㅇ ㅈ ㅊ ㅋ ㅌ ㅍ ㅎ. Rough starting-sound hints are g/k, n, d/t, r/l, m, b/p, s, silent, j, ch, k, t, p, h. These English hints are not exact pronunciations. In particular, ㄱ and ㅋ are different Korean sounds, not interchangeable ways to write English k. Listen to whole words as well as looking at the letters.
The 10 basic vowels
The basic set is ㅏ ㅑ ㅓ ㅕ ㅗ ㅛ ㅜ ㅠ ㅡ ㅣ. Their romanized labels are a, ya, eo, yeo, o, yo, u, yu, eu, i. The labels eo and eu each represent one vowel, not two English vowel sounds. Practise 아 어 오 우 separately. Vertical vowels such as ㅏ sit to the right of the starting consonant; horizontal vowels such as ㅗ sit underneath it.
What comes after the basic set?
Modern Korean has 19 initial consonants and 21 vowel forms. The five additional initial consonants are ㄲ ㄸ ㅃ ㅆ ㅉ. The other vowel forms are ㅐ ㅒ ㅔ ㅖ ㅘ ㅙ ㅚ ㅝ ㅞ ㅟ ㅢ. Learn these in small groups with audio rather than expecting English spelling to explain every contrast. Haru’s Hangul studio lets you choose each form and see the resulting syllable.
Check your reading
Cover the examples below. Build a block from ㅁ + ㅗ, then ㄴ + ㅜ, then ㅇ + ㅣ. Read the consonant first and the vowel second. In the last combination, initial ㅇ supplies the required starting position but has no consonant sound. Reveal the answers only after making your own attempt.
Keep these examples handy
| Expression or step | Reading or meaning | How to use it |
|---|---|---|
| ㄴ + ㅏ → 나 | na, approximately | Vertical vowel to the right |
| ㅁ + ㅗ → 모 | mo | Horizontal vowel below |
| ㄴ + ㅜ → 누 | nu | Compare the vowel with 노 |
| ㅇ + ㅣ → 이 | i | Initial ㅇ is silent |
Check your understanding
Try each question before opening its answer.
Build ㅁ + ㅗ, ㄴ + ㅜ, ㅇ + ㅣ.
모, 누, 이. No final consonant is needed.
How many syllable blocks are in 바나나?
Three: 바 / 나 / 나. A block is not necessarily a whole word.
Your questions, answered
Do I need to memorize all the letters first?
You can begin reading small combinations while learning the chart. Add new forms gradually.
Is romanization the pronunciation?
It is a spelling aid. Compare it with Korean audio, especially for vowels and consonant contrasts absent from English.
Keep exploring
These beginner explanations introduce practical language in context. Romanization is approximate. Consult the dictionary below for meanings and pronunciation.
- National Institute of Korean Language: How Hangul syllables are built
- National Institute of Korean Language: Korean–English Learners’ Dictionary
- Online King Sejong Institute
For word meanings and pronunciation, open the learner dictionary linked above.
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