Korean Lessons ᚛ Level 2 - Korean for Beginners #1 (Lessons 31 to 60) ᚛ Lesson 40 - Tell the time in Korean
Tell the time in Korean
Telling the time in Korean is not a difficult task, but it is necessary to navigate between the language's two number systems. That means:
- hours use pure Korean numbers
- minutes and seconds use Sino-Korean numbers
Counting hours in Korean
To count hours, we use pure Korean numbers, placing them before the word 시.
For example:
- 5:00 is said 5시, that is 다섯 시.
- 7:00 is said 7시, that is 일곱 시.
Note that pure Korean numbers that end in 1, 2, 3, or 4 lose their final character in order to make pronunciation flow more smoothly:
- 1 - 하나 becomes 한
- 2 - 둘 becomes 두
- 3 - 셋 becomes 세
- 4 - 넷 becomes 네
This rule not only applies for hours, but also for any time a pure Korean number is used to number something, which we will see in more detail in the next chapter.
Some examples:
|
2:00 |
2시 |
두 시 |
|
3:00 |
3시 |
세 시 |
|
6:00 |
6시 |
여섯 시 |
|
8:00 |
8시 |
여덟 시 |
|
10:00 |
10시 |
열 시 |
|
11:00 |
11시 |
열한 시 |
If you want to specify the exact hour, you can use the term 정각.
9시 정각
→ 9 o’clock sharp. / Exactly 9 o’clock.
Count minutes in Korean
To count minutes, we use Sino-Korean numbers, placing them in front of the word 분.
For example:
- 45min is said 45분, that is 사십오 분.
- 22min is said 22분, that is 이십이 분.
Write the time in Korean
In Korean, the time is told in the following format:
[pure Korean number]시 [Sino-Korean number]분
|
1:12 |
1시 12분 |
한 시 십이 분 |
|
3:58 |
3시 58분 |
세 시 오십팔 분 |
|
7:08 |
7시 8분 |
일곱 시 팔 분 |
|
9:33 |
9시 33분 |
아홉 시 삼십삼 분 |
|
11:47 |
11시 47분 |
열한 시 사십칠 분 |
To say "thirty", we can say 반.
|
2:30 |
2시 반 |
두 시 반 |
To ask the time and respond, the following phrases are possible.
몇 시예요?
→ What time is it?
3시예요.
→ It is 3:00.
1시 20분이에요.
→ It is 1:20.
The 12-hour system and specifying the time of day.
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Exercises
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