Written by Dr.

In Ku Kim-Marshall

STEP BY STEP
through 15 Action Verbs

Korean

Table of Contents
Acknowledgement ........................................................................................................... 3 About this book
............................................................................................................... ....................................................................................................

6 8

How to use this book

Unit 1 The Korean Alphabet, hangeul ()

1. Korean Sounds and Hangeul Letters .................................................... 10 2. How to Read Korean Words .................................................................. 12 3. How to Construct Korean Words.......................................................... 21 4. How to Write Korean Words.................................................................. 23

Unit 2 Korean Sentences with 15 Action Verbs

Introduction
................................................................................................ .........................................................

34 38 46 50 54 58 62 70 74 82

Chapter 1. [gada] to go

Chapter 2. [gongbuhada] to study .................. 42 Chapter 3. [masida] to drink

...................................... ................................. .................................

Chapter 4. [mannada] to meet Chapter 5. [malhada] to speak Review Exercises 01~05

...............................................................

Chapter 6. [meokda] to eat Chapter 8. [sada] to buy

.................................................

Chapter 7. [boda] to see ....................................................... 66

....................................................... .....................................................

Chapter 9. [oda] to come Review Exercises 06~10

Chapter 10. [insahada] to greet ....................... 78

...............................................................

STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

Chapter 11. [ireonada] to get up Chapter 12. [ikdda] to read

....................

86 90 98

.................................................

Chapter 13. [itdda] to have .................................................. 94 Chapter 14. [jeonhwahada] to call Review Exercises 11~15 Answer Key
.................

Chapter 15. [joahada] to like ........................... 102

.............................................................

106 110

.............................................................................................

Unit 3 Korean Culture

Introduction ............................................................................................. 117 King Sejong the Great and hangeul, the Korean alphabet ..... 119

1. [sejongdaewang] : 2. [taegeuggi] : The Korean National Flag 3. [dangun] : The Founder of Gojoseon, the Oldest Kingdom of Korea(2333 B.C. ~ 108 B.C.) 121 4. [chuseok] : Harvest Moon Festival
............................... .............

120

122 125 126

5. [dol][hwan-gap] : Korean Family Celebrations ..... 123 6. [Yut] [nori] : Traditional Korean Game 7. [bulgogi] [kimchi] : Korean Food
...................... ......................

Appendix
A. Pronunciation Rules Continued
..........................................................

130

B. Basic Korean Grammar : Review ....................................................... 131

Vocabulary List

.............................................................................................

141

About this book

Starting to learn a new language can be an intimidating experience for students, especially if they are using a selfstudy method. This book is a fun and easy way to help students learn to read and speak simple Korean. Sample sentences built with 15 commonly used verbs will introduce simple vocabulary and basic points of Korean grammar. This way, students can make progress right from the start. They can then build on the knowledge gained here by continuing with the rest of this three-book series. The characteristic elements of this textbook are: beginning level study with the most common verbs and nouns introduction of basic Korean grammar rules for verb usage repetition of sentences on each page, allowing the student to learn vocabulary and grammar at the same time introduction of the basic sentence structure in the present tense grammar notes on each page vocabulary lists at the end of each page making it easy for the student to learn important words verbs followed by exercises to reinforce the knowledge of the verb s use pictures that enable the student to relate what they re learning to a visual image

STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

conversational sentences which help the student learn simple conversational language discussion of Korean culture and customs The author hopes that the learner can develop knowledge and interest in Korean and that he/she will continue to deepen his/her understanding of the Korean language and culture.

How to use this book

Read each sentence and its meaning. Look at each picture and associate the meaning. Complete the various exercises and word searches including the cross word puzzles in this book. Study the grammar notes which can help the learner understand the important grammar points.

STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

Unit 1 The Korean Alphabet,

hangeul

Unit 1 : The Korean Alphabet, hangeul ()

When first introduced by King Sejong in 1446, hangeul had 28 letters of which only 24 are in use today . The 10 basic vowels and 14 single consonants of hangeul expand to 21 vowels and 19 consonants for a total of 40 letters in combination. The following are the sound values and names of each letter.

1. Korean Sound and Hangeul Letters a. Consonants : 19 letters

Single Consonant : 14 letters
Hangeul Letter Sound Value Name of letter Example

[g/k] [n] [d/t] [r/l] [m] [b/p] [s/sh] [*/ng] [j] [ch] [k] [t] [p] [h]

[giyeok] [nieun] [digeut] [rieul] [mieum] [bieup] [siot] [ieung] [jieut] [chieut] [kieut] [tieut] [pieup] [hieut]

goat nose dog red moon big soft * George cheese kite table paper hat

silent, when a word starts with this letter ; ng, at the end of a word.

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STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

Double Consonant : 5 letters

Hangeul letter Sound value Name of letter

[kk] [tt] [pp] [ss] [jj]

[ssanggiyeok] [ssangdigeut] [ssangbieup] [ssangsiot] [ssangjieut]

b. Vowels : 21 letters
Single Vowel : 10 letters
Hangeul Letter Sound Value Name of letter Example

[a] [ya] [eo] [yeo] [o] [yo] [u] [yu] [eu] [i]

[a] [ya] [eo] [yeo] [o] [yo] [u] [yu] [eu] [i]

father yacht about young home yoyo mood you put bee

Vowels by themselves must always be preceeded by o (silent), because Korean words always begin with a consonant.

Ex.

[agi] baby [eomeoni] mother

[uyu] milk [ori] duck

11

Double Vowel : 11 letters

Hangeul letter Sound value Name of letter Example

[ae] [yae] [e] [ye] [wa] [wae] [we] [weo] [we] [wi] [eui]

[ae] [yae] [e] [ye] [wa] [wae] [we] [weo] [we] [wi] [eui]

cat yam bet, pen yes wine quack when wonder when we

2. How to Read Korean Words

In Korean, each letter has a unique sound associated only with that letter. The following are examples of how to read the consonants ( c) and vowels (v) that form each word.

+ [ga] [g] [a]

[g] [go] [o]

+ [g] [a] + [k]

[gak]

[g] + [o] + [t]

[got]

At the end of a word, is pronounced as [k], is pronounced as [t], when the word is not followed by another word.

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STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

+ [g] [a] + [p] []

[gap]

[g] + [o] + [l] []

[gol]

When the double consonants and are used as final consonants and are followed by , , , or , they are pronounced as single finals [p], and the is not pronounced.

Reading Practice : Read each word aloud. a. Consonants : 19 letters

[g] [n] [d] [r]*
[gogi] [gudu] [nabi] [noru] [dari] meat shoes butterfly deer [gicha] [gochu] [nuna] [namu] [dubu] train redpepper elder sister tree bellflower tofu Russia Saturday

leg, bridge [doraji] radio ruby [reosia] [toyoil]

[dotori] acorn [radio] [rubi]

* If a word starts with , you pronounce it [r], but if a word ends with , you pronounce it [l].

[m] [b] [s] []*

head hat sea barley lion spoon and chopsticks [abeoji] father duck [ori]

[meori] [moja] [bada] [bori] [saja] [sujeo]

[mogi] [mu] [baji] [binu] [sonamu] [seuseung]

mosquito radish trousers soap pine tree teacher

[eomeoni] mother [uyu] milk

* Initialois silent.

13

 [j] [ch] [k] [t] [p] [h] [gg] [dd] [bb] [ss] [jj]

[jayu] [jusa] [cha] [cheung] [ko] [ki] [toggi] [pado] [pibu] [hama] [hyuji] [ggachi] [ggoma] [ddada] [ddeuda] [bbang]

freedom injection car, tea floor nose height rabbit wave skin hippo tissue magpie kid to pick to rise bread

[jadu] [jigu] [cho] [chima] [sokuri] [koggiri] [tusu] [tajo] [podo] [pari] [heori] [hodo] [ggum] [ddi] [ddodasi]

plum globe candle skirt basket elephant pitcher ostrich grape fly waist walnut dream belt again

[tajagi] typewriter

[ggureomi] bundle

[bbareuda] to be fast [gibbeuda] to be happy [ssoda] [ssal] [jjok] [jjigae] to shoot rice piece, direction stew

[babbeuda] to be busy [ssauda] to fight [sseuda] [jjada] [jjida] to write to be salty to steam

b. Vowels : 21 letters
[a] [ya] [eo] [yeo]
[ga-su] [da-ri] [ya-gu] [ya-man] [geo-ri] [beo-seu] [yeo-ja] [yeo-u] singer leg, bridge baseball savage street bus woman fox [na-bi] [a-gi] [dae-ya] [meo-ri] [heo-ri] [byeo] [yeo-reum] butterfly baby washbowl head waist rice plant summer

[ya-ja-su] palm tree

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STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

 [o] [yo] [u] [yu] [eu] [i] [ae] (+l) [e] (+l) [ye] (+l) [wa] (+) [wae] (+) [we] (+l) [weo] (+) [wi] (+l) [eui] (+l)

[so] [ho-su] [pyo] [gyo-su] [gu-du] [bu-mo] [nyu-seu] [yu-ja] [geu-ne] [keu-da] [i-sa] [gi-cha] [bae-chu] [sae-u] [se-mo] [ye] [se-gye] [gwa-ja] [wa-yo] [dwae-ji] [wae-yo] [we-gyo] [hwe-sa]

cow lake ticket professor shoes parents news citron swing to be big moving train cabbage shrimp triangle yes world cookies come pig why diplomacy company

[o-i] [mo-ja] [hyo] [yo-ri] [du-bu] [ju-so] [yu-ri] [hyu-ji] [seu-ki] [bi-nu] [ji-gu] [bae] [hae] [ga-ge] [si-gye] [cha-rye] [hwa-ga] [wang]

cucumber hat filial piety cooking tofu address glass tissue ski soap globe ship / pear sun shop watch order painter king

[heu-reu-da] to flow

[na-geu-ne] vagabond, traveler [je-ju-do] Jeju Island

[wae] why, old name of Japan [kwae-cha] complete recovery [we-ga] mother s family [we-guk] foreign country [deo-weo-yo] hot [weon-sung-i] monkey [dwi] [jwi] [eui-ja] [eui-hwae] behind, rear rat chair congress

[chu-weo-yo] cold [mae-weo-yo] spicy [wi] [gwi] [eui-sa] [ye-eui] up / stomach ear doctor politeness

15

Reading Practice: continued

c. Third position consonants : 8 pronunciation groups
In Korean, the 2nd and 3rd consonants in a word are referred to as . must always be 1 or 2 consonants and all fall into eight pronunciation groups:
1

, and are pronounced as [k], when the word is not followed by another vowel.
Ex.

k] [sok inside k] kitchen [bu-eok

k] Korea [han-guk k] [bak outside

is pronounced as [n n]. This letter sound does not change, whatever the position.
Ex.

nun n] [n eye, snow n-gae] fog [an

n-ji] letter [pyeon n] towel [su-geon

, , , , and are pronounced as [t t], when the word is not followed by another vowel.
Ex.

t] [got t] [bit t] [nat t] [bit t] [mit t-dda] [it

soon comb daytime light bottom to have

t-ga-rak] [sut t] [ot [it-dda] t] [ggot t] [ggeut

spoon clothing to forget flower end

17

is pronounced as [l l], when the word ends with.

Ex.

l] [dal moon l] face [eol-gul

l] autumn [ga-eul l-gi] strawberry [ddal

And if a word ends withand is followed by another ,you pronounce both [l].
Ex.

l-l la-yo] (it) is different [dal l-l la-yo] (I) do not know [mol

is pronounced as [m m]. This letter sound does not change, whatever the position.
Ex.

m] spring [bom m] night, chestnut [bam

m-sim m] lunch [jeom m] heart [ma-eum

and are pronounced as a short [p p]at the end of a final syllable

Ex.

p] [ap front p] class [su-eop

p] [yeop side p] occupation [ji-geop

is pronounced as [-ng], when a word ends with .

Ex.

ng] river [gan ng] ball [gon

ng] [ban room ng-guk] England [yeon

becomes silent [], when it is at the end of a syllable and is followed by a vowel.
Ex.

(silent)

[jo o-a] that s fine [jo o-eu-myeon] If (you) like

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STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

But when is at the end of a syllable that is followed by the consonants , , or , the pronunciation of the consonants changes to the aspirated consonants [, , ] respectively.
Ex.

k] [k

ko] put and [no-k ko](it [jo-k s) fine and ta] to put [no-t ta] to be good [jo-t chi] [jo-c chi] [no-c

t] [t

ch] [c

Pronunciation Note : Liaison ()

When the consonant is at the end of a syllable and is followed by a vowel, it is pronounced at the beginning of the next syllable.
Ex.

[so-g ge] [han-gu-g ge] inside [bu-eo-k ke] in the kitchen [ba-g gge] [bi-c chi] [mi-t te] under, on the bottom [na-j je] si] during the day [o-s [su-eo-b bi] class [ji-geo-b bi] [a-p peu-ro] to the front [yeo-p pe]

in Korea outside the light is the clothes are the job is to the side

Reading Practice:
? [an-nyeong-ha-se-yo] (!) Hello, Hi
Used as a greeting in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening.

. [an-nyeong-hi ga-se-yo] Good-bye

Saying good-bye in a situation when one stays at a place and the other departs.

. [an-nyeong-hi gye-se-yo] Good-bye

This phrase is used by the person who departs from the place.

19

3. How to Construct Korean Words

There are six ways to construct Korean words using Hangeul. These 6 ways can be sub-divided into two parts, each consisting of 3 types of word constructions, as described below in part A and B. Construction of a Korean word must always begin with a single or double consonant.

Part A (1-3)
When the first vowel in a word is, , , , or l, the word is constructed by having the letters arranged horizontally. (c-consonant: v -vowel)
1. Horizontal combination of a consonant with one of these 5 vowels
Ex.

c+v

2. Horizontal combination of 2 consonants and a vowel. The 1st consonant stands side by side with a vowel. The 2nd consonant is written below the combined c+v. The 2nd consonant is [bat-chim]). can be 1 or referred to as the third position ( 2 consonants but must always be a consonant.
Ex.

c+v c

()

3. Horizontal combination of 3 consonants and a vowel. (c+v+2 consonants)

Ex.

c+v c c

()

21

Part B (4-6)
, , , or When the final vowel in the word is, ,the word is constructed by having the letters arranged vertically.
4. Vertical combination of a consonant with one of these 5 vowels (, , , or ).
Ex.

c + v

5. Vertical combination of 2 consonants and a vowel.

Ex.

c + v + c

()

+ +

6. Vertical combination of 3 consonants and a vowel. (c+v+2 consonants).

Ex.

c + v + c c

()

+ +

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STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

4. How to Write Korean Words

The easiest way to learn to write hangeul is to follow the prescribed stroke order below using squared paper.

a. Consonants : 19 letters
The fourteen consonants are shown below in Korean alphabetical order with the direction and sequence of the strokes. The romanized letters are their sound value.

gg

d/t
23

 dd r/l

b/p bb
24

STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

ss

jj

ch

25

26

STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

b. Vowels : 21 letters
There are a total of twenty-one different vowel-syllables. In the table below , the vowels are listed in Korean alphabetical order

ae ya yae eo
27

yeo ye

wa wae
28
STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

 oe yo

weo we

29

ui

yu eu eui l

30

STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

Exercises
1. Write the fourteen consonants in the .

- - - - - - - - - - - - 2. Fill in the boxes alphabetically.

- -- --- 3. Write the ten vowels in the .

--- -- - - -

4. Please fill in the gaps in alphabetical order.

--

--

5. Write the words in alphabetical order.

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

31

Unit 2 : Introduction
In Korean, verbs are conjugated in 4 different forms depending on whom is being addressed. These forms are: Polite formal, Polite informal, Plain and Intimate Speech style (See detail in Appendix, page 135)
You will learn in Unit 2

1.

How to conjugate verbs in the present tense using the polite informal form (Vst+-//): (Vst : abbreviation of Verb Stem) The infinitive form of every Korean verb consists of the stem and the - ending.

Ex.

(to go)
stem ending

(to study)
stem ending

When conjugating the verb, - is dropped and the polite informal form is added to the stem. All verbs fall into one of three groups, which determines the conjugation:

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STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

a.

When the Vst ends with the vowel or , then the ending changes this way Vst+-
Ex.

(to go) (to come)

+-
stem

+-
stem

b.

When the Vst ends with any vowel except or , then the ending changes this way Vst+-

(to eat) (to wear)

+-
stem

+-
stem

c.

When the Vst ends withverb ending, such as , , then the ending changes this way +- which is contracted as Vst+-

(to study)

+-
stem

(to work)

+-
stem

35

Note: When conjugating some verbs, certain vowel combinations occur, which are then contracted. The following are examples of contraction rules: Ex.

contraction = [a] = [wa] = [weo] = [eo] = [yeo] = [ae]

Verb (to go) (to come) (to give) (to stand) (to drink) (to work)

Example: polite informal conjugation (Vst+-//)

2.

How to construct a Korean Sentence : The Korean sentence is structured in Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) order. The verb is always at the end of the sentence. Unlike in English, the Korean subject is followed by a subject particle (-/) and the object is followed by an object particle(-/).
Ex.

subject

subject particle

object
. (The baby drinks milk.)
object particle

Note: The verb in the Korean language never changes regardless of whether the subject is singular or plural, personal pronoun third person (he, she, it), or a proper noun (Georgetown University). Also, Korean never uses capital letters or cursive.

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STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

For the rest of this course, verbs (in the vocabulary list) will be written with the stem in a larger font than the ending:
Ex.

verb stem + verb stem +

ending ending ending

verb stem +

37

Chapter. 01 (to go)

.
I go to school.

Vocabulary
() () () to go (+)present tense (to) where I (topic marker) (to) school / school

38

STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

. . ? . . Grammar Notes
/ Topic marker. When attached to a noun, it shows the subject of the sentence, orcontrast, (See p.132) Subject of the sentence
. When the noun ends in a consonant, Ex. . (Sujin) As for Sujin, she is going to school. . When the noun ends in a vowel, Ex. . (university) As for me, I am going to the university.

where in, at,orto.Used after place or time nouns to show location or direction.
Ex. . I go to school. . (New York) I go to New York.

39

Exercises 01
1. Fill in the blanks withor . ( ( ( ( ( ) . ) . (Albert) ) . (Sujin / home) ) . (mother / store) ) . (we)

(to go)
40

2. Fill in the blanks with. ( ( ( ( ) . ) . (New York) ) . (Seoul) ) . (Korea)

3. Translate into Korean. I go to school.

Albert goes to New York.

We go to Florida.

Sujin goes to Seoul.

STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

4. Read the sentence. Which word is the verb? Mark your answer in each line.
Ex.

Ch. 01

.
. . .

(to go)

5. Read each sentence. Choose the sentence that is written correctly. Mark your answer. . . . . 6. Answer the following questions, using the answers given in parentheses. ? () ? (home) ? (New York / friend) ? (Korea) ? (store)

41

Chapter. 02 (to study)

.
I study Korean.

Vocabulary
to study (+)present tense I (topic marker) Korean language (object particle)

() ()

42

STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

. . . . . Grammar Notes
/ Object particle. It comes after a noun and shows the object of the verb.
i. When a noun ends in a consonant, Ex. . (friend) ii. When a noun ends in a vowel, Ex. . (English) My friend studies English.

Personal Pronoun

These forms are used when the speaker talks to a subordinate or an equal.
singular plural we you they ()* ()

I you he she it

Plural marker
Ex. (student) (students) / (child) (children)

43

Exercises 02
1. Fill in the blanks withor. ( ( ( ( ( ) . ) . (English) ) . (German) ) . (Sumi / Spanish) ) . (Chinese)

Ch. 02
(to study)
44

2. Translate into Korean. My friend studies Korean. (my) Sujin studies English. (Sujin) We study Spanish. (we) My friend studies Chinese. (Chinese) I study Japanese. (Japanese) We study German. (we)

3. Read the sentences and choose the one that is written correctly. Mark your answer. . . .

STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs

4. Form a correct sentence from each group of words given below. , ,

Ch. 02
(to study)

, ,

, ,

, ,

5. The following sentences are scrambled. Please write them correctly.

(Sumi)

45

Chapter. 03

(to drink)

.
My younger sibling drinks water.

Vocabulary
() () to drink (+)present tense my (shortened form of my) younger sibling (subject particle) water (object particle) exercise after now

46

STEP BY STEP KOREAN (1) through 15 Action Verbs