Korean for Dummies (6 page)

The
r,l
sound differs in that it is pronounced as
r
before a vowel, as in
baram
(
ba-ram;
wind),
ramyun
(
ra-myun;
instant noodles) and as
l
everywhere else as in
balral
(
bal-ral;
energetic).

Pronouncing jj, kk, pp, and tt

Most people have little trouble pronouncing
j
and
ch,
but the
jj
sound is often a source of frustration. To understand first how the
jj
sound is pronounced (and later, the
kk, pp,
and
tt
sounds), try saying
jazz, match,
and
champ.
You should notice that the
ch
sound has the most air coming out of your mouth and
j
the next. It should seem as though you are trying to prevent any air from coming out. For this reason, the
j, ch,
and also
jj
sounds are called
affricates.
They are phonetically a combination of a stop and a fricative, hence the term
affricate,
which involves a friction of airflow as well as the obstruction of airflow at different stages of its production.

In fact, the
jj, kk, pp,
and
tt
sounds are actually stops of the
ch, k, p,
and
t
sounds. So when you pronounce
jj, kk, pp,
and
tt,
try letting less air rush out of your mouth than you would when you are saying
ch, k, pp,
and
t.
Try these examples: 05_037188-ch01.qxp 6/24/08 11:06 PM Page 15

chong
(
chong;
gun)

jeojjok
(
juh-jjok;
over there)

jjok-jii
(
jjok-jee;
memo)

kkeut
(
kkeud;
end)

kkot
(
kkot;
flower)

kong
(
kong;
bean)

pal
(
pal;
arm)

ppalli
(
ppal-li;
fast)

ppang
(
ppang;
bread)

tang
(
tang;
bang)

ttang
(
ttang;
ground)

tteok
(
tteog;
rice cake)

Telling the difference between s and ss

Again, the name of the game in pronouncing the
s
and
ss
sounds is airflow.

However, the defining characteristic of these two sounds is that they involve hissing sounds when they are produced, hence their name ‘sibilant.’ The
ss
sound involves more friction of airflow compared to the
s
sound. The
s
sound in the words
sound
and
cinema
is like the Korean
ss
sound. Try saying the words
ssal
(ss
al;
rice) and
ssada
(
ssa
-
da
: cheap)
.

On the other hand, the Korean
s
sound is closer to an English
z
sound compared to the
ss
sound. But,
s
is quite different from
z
in English in that the former is voiceless and the latter voiced. Try saying
zada
first, but then say the
z
sound imagining that you’ve lost your voice. You should have an
s
sound that is significantly softer, and also longer, than what you are used to.

If you have trouble differentiating the two, try pronouncing the
s
sound twice as long as you would the
ss
sound. Try these examples:

ssal
(
ss-al;
rice),
sal
(
sal;
skin)

ssada
(
ssa-da;
cheap),
sada
(
sa-da;
buy) One more thing to know about the
s
and the
ss
sound is that when they are combined with an
i
sound, as
si
and
ssi,
they are read
shi
and
sshi
, as in these examples:
ssi
(
sshi;
Mr., Mrs., Miss),
si
(
shi;
poem) 05_037188-ch01.qxp 6/24/08 11:06 PM Page 16

Pronouncing the Korean r,l sound

If you
gullida
(
gool-lee-da;
roll) your
hyeo
(
hyuh;
tongue) across the
cheonjang
(
chun-jang;
roof) of your mouth, you should notice a flat hard part near the teeth and a ridge where you should notice an incline. When you say
d
as in
day
and
dog,
or
l
as in
lamb
and
log,
your tongue stays on the hard part near your
i
(
ee;
teeth). In the case of
l
in English, the tip of your tongue touches the alveolar ridge, but when you pronounce an
r
sound as in
run
and
rock,
the tip of your tongue stays behind the ridge on the roof of your mouth, somewhere on the incline.

The key to pronouncing the Korean
r,l
sound is to keep only the tip of your tongue on the ridge between the
r
and
l
sounds. If you have trouble pronouncing the
r,l
sound, just think of it as the
l
sound pronounced by putting the tip of your tongue on the ridge that I was talking about earlier. Try these examples.

chitsol
(
chi
-
ssol;
toothbrush)

hangari
(
hang-a-ree;
jar, pot)

nara
(
na-ra;
country)

pal
(
pal;
arm)

ramyun
(
ra
-
myun;
instant noodles)

uri
(
oo-ree;
us, we)

Muting consonants at the end of a syllable

When Korean syllables or
daneo
(
da-nuh;
words) end in a
g
or a
d
sound, Koreans will mute the
g
or
d
sound. More specifically speaking, syllable-final
g
and
d
are unreleased sounds. When pronouncing these sounds, the airflow is closed very rapidly. Koreans do this by not letting as much air rush out of their mouths as they would when they would pronounce a
g
or a
d
sound at the beginning of a syllable. As
isanghan
(
ee
-
sanghan;
strange) as this may sound, even English speakers do this when they say the
d
in
good morning.

For practice, try these examples (
kkeut
should sound a lot like
good
):
kkeut
(
kkeud;
end)

chitsol
(
chi-ssol;
toothbrush)

chaek
(
chaeg;
book)

yok-jo
(
yog-jo;
bathtub)

05_037188-ch01.qxp 6/24/08 11:06 PM Page 17

hyu-sik
(
hyu-sheeg;
rest)

jeojjok
(
juh-jjog;
over there)

ttokttok
(
ttog-ttog;
knock knock)

badak
(
ba-dag;
floor)

Sounding Fluent

Once you have a grasp of the basic Korean
sori
(
so-ree;
sounds), mimicking the intonation, and cadence of a Korean speaker should take just a
jogeum
(
jo
-
geum;
little) more work. But this does not mean that path to excellent Korean pronunciation is one without
yuhok
(
yoo-hok;
temptations). In this section, I provide three tips for mastering Korean pronunciation and making your Korean sound even more natural.

Koreans use many English words on a daily basis. A few of them sound similar to the original English words but for others you might have to use your imagination. Most of these words should be easy to memorize and help you better understand Korean pronunciation.

Don’t stress

English words and sentences are full of stressed and unstressed syllables. For example, the sentence “Ko-
rean
pro-nun-ci-
a
-tion is
sim
-ple” is stressed at three points. The same sentence in Korean, “
Hangugeo bareumeun swiwoyo
(
han-goo-guh ba-reum-eun shee-wo-yo;
Korean pronunciation is easy),” is said with no stress at all. It is possible to emphasize a particular word in a sentence by saying each syllable in that word
cheoncheonhi
(
chun
-
chun
-
hee;
slowly) and
keuge
(keu-gae
;
loudly), but if you ever feel tempted to put stress on a syllable within a word in Korean, resist.

Pronounce each syllable

In this book, I provide the Romanization for the Korean word and sentences, then I write out how each word is pronounced breaking words up into syllables. Although it may be tempting read each syllable quickly, if you enunciate each syllable clearly it will be easier for you to pronounce words accurately, and easier for Koreans to understand you. Remember to speak like an Australian or British person, such as pronouncing
a
as
ah
.

05_037188-ch01.qxp 6/24/08 11:06 PM Page 18

Puzzling English words in Korean

Some English words have had their meanings

your male co-worker says he prefers boxer—

changed over the course of their assimilation

style
sa-gag-paen-tee
to briefs.

into the Korean language. Don’t be surprised

Training:
Choo-ree-ning
does not mean

when you hear familiar English words used with

training. Instead, it refers to the gym pants

different meanings.

that you wear when you train.

Panties:
Paen-tee
does not only refer to

Villa:
Beel-la
is not a house in the countryside,

women’s underwear; it also refers to men’s

but a condominium or apartment complex.

underwear. Do not get the wrong idea if

Speak in a steady rhythm

At times, English sentences can sound like a waltz, a minuet, a serenade or sometimes even like a jazz piece. This is all because speakers of English can vary the rhythm of the words within a sentence. Although Koreans may raise or lower the tone of their
moksori
(
mok-so-ree;
voices), the best rhythm of Korean speech is a steady one, almost like a march. It might even help if you clap your hands at a steady beat and pronounce each syllable as you clap.

Remember, if you feel the
piryo
(
pee-ryo;
need) to vary the rhythm of a Korean sentence, resist.

Basic phrases

Table 1-3 provides some basic phrases that you can begin practicing now so that even if you don’t sound fluent, you can show that you’re trying.

Table 1-3

Basic Korean Phrases

Korean

Pronunciation

Translation

cheoncheonhi

chun-chun-hee

Speak slowly please.

malhaejusaeyo

mal-hae-joo-sae-yo

[some word] eui tteutsi

[some word] eui tteut-shee What does [some word]

hangugeoro/yeongeoro

han-goo-guh-ro/ young—

mean in Korean/English?

mwoyaeyo?

uh-ro mwo-yae-yo?

[some word] eul

[some word] rul ba-reum—

Please pronounce [some

bareumhae jusaeyo

hae-joo-sae-yo

word].

05_037188-ch01.qxp 6/24/08 11:06 PM Page 19

Korean

Pronunciation

Translation

gomawoyo

go-ma-wuh-yo

Thank you.

anieyo

a-ni-yae-yo

No, or No thank you.

gwaenchanayo

gwenchan-a-yo

It’s all right.

joayo

jo-a-yo

Good, I agree.

byeolmalsseumeseyo

byeolmal-sseum-e-se-yo

Don’t mention it.

silyaehaeyo

shil-lae-hae-yo

Excuse me.

mianhaeyo

mee-an-hae-yo

Sorry.

Talkin’ the Talk

Jessica and Jewu are friends. Jessica has learned some Korean and

surprises Jewu.

Jessica: jaeussi

annyeonghaseyo

jae-woo-sshi an-nyoung-ha-sae-yo
?

Jae-Woo, are you doing well? [literal translation: Are

you in peace?]

Jewu:

ye. geureondae jaessikassi hangugeo gongbuhaeyo?

ye. geu-ruhn-dae jae-ssi-ka sshi han-goo-guh gong-

boo-hae-yo?

Yes. By the way, Jessica, are you studying Korean?

Jessica:

ye. jinanjuae babodeuleulwihan hangukeochaekeul

saseo bwaseoyo.

ye. jee-nan-joo-ae ba-bo-deuleul-wee-han han-goo-

guh chaeg-eul sa-suh bwa-ssuh-yo
.

Yes. Last week, I bought
Korean For Dummies,
then

started reading it.

Jewu:

jeongmaryo? bareumi cham jeonghwakhaneyo.

jungmal-yo? ba-reum-ee cham-jung-hwak-ha-nae-yo
.

Really? Your pronunciation is very accurate.

05_037188-ch01.qxp 6/24/08 11:06 PM Page 20

Jessica:

anieyo. ajik mani bujokhaeyo. jaeussi, “eoryeowoyo”

reul hangugmallo eotteoke bareumhaeyo?

a-nee-ae-yo. a-jeek man-ee boo-jok-hae-yo. jaeu sshi,

“uh-ryuh-wo-yo”-reul han-gug-mal-lo uh-ttuh-kae

ba-reum-hae-yo?

Not really. I’m still far from fluent. Jae-Woo, how do