Numbers in Korean

• [ttmik: level 1 - lesson 15] for Sino-Korean numbers
• [ttmik: level 1 - lesson 20] for native Korean numbers

There are two ways to express numbers in Korean. The Sino-Korean number system is used to talk about numbers themselves, like the numbers in a phone number or the price of something.

In general, native Korean numbers are used for counting things – in combination with a counter :

• Talking about the amount of countable objects
• For telling the hour and minute of the time.
• To talk about someones age (in everyday conversations).

Sino-Korean numbers #

The numbers are read as they are written from left to right (unlike the last two digits in German). Each digit has its own modifier following the number part of the digit similar to “hundred” or “thousand” in English but up until 1000 (in English these modifiers go until 100). If the number part is 1, the number part can be omitted. So saying “one thousand” is the same as saying “thousand” in Korean.

Additionally needed numbers:

Examples #

• 312 삼백십이
• 1,234 천이백삼십사
• 43,600 사만삽천육백
• 512,000 오십만십이천

Native Korean numbers #

Native Korean numbers work similar as sino-Korean numbers, except that every multiple of 10 gets its own name.

Examples #

• 11 열하나
• 19 열아홉

Numbers over 99 #

Interestingly, the native Korean numbers are only used until 99. If you need to express bigger numbers in this format you use the sino-Korean numbers for the high part of the number but keep using the native-Korean numbers until 99, so you have to combine both systems:

• 101 백하나
• 205 이백다섯

Before nouns #

The native Korean numbers for 1, 2, 3, 4 and 20 change if they are directly predecessing a noun (like a counter).

• 하나 + 살 한 살
• 둘 + 살 두 살
• 셋 + 살 세 살
• 넷 + 살 네 살
• 스물 + 살 스무 살
• (!) 스물한 + 살 스물한 살 (스물 not directly predecessing a noun)