100 Korean words to build your first sentences: family, time, places, food, body, colors and key adjectives.
People and family
The words you'll say most in a day, yourself, the other person, family, friends.
| Hangul | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 나 | na | I, me (casual) |
| 저 | jeo | I, me (polite) |
| 너 | neo | you (casual) |
| 당신 | dangsin | you (formal) (use carefully) |
| 사람 | saram | person, human |
| 친구 | chingu | friend |
| 가족 | gajok | family |
| 엄마 | eomma | mom |
| 아빠 | appa | dad |
| 형 | hyeong | older brother (of a male) |
| 오빠 | oppa | older brother (of a female) |
| 누나 | nuna | older sister (of a male) |
| 언니 | eonni | older sister (of a female) |
| 동생 | dongsaeng | younger sibling |
| 선생님 | seonsaengnim | teacher (respectful form) |
Time and calendar
Korean splits time into 'pure Korean' words (어제, 오늘) and 'Sino-Korean' words (월요일, 1월). Here are the essentials.
| Hangul | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 오늘 | oneul | today |
| 어제 | eoje | yesterday |
| 내일 | naeil | tomorrow |
| 지금 | jigeum | now |
| 아침 | achim | morning, breakfast |
| 점심 | jeomsim | noon, lunch |
| 저녁 | jeonyeok | evening, dinner |
| 밤 | bam | night |
| 주말 | jumal | weekend |
| 시간 | sigan | time, hour |
| 년 | nyeon | year |
| 월 | wol | month |
| 일 | il | day |
| 주일 | juil | week |
| 분 | bun | minute |
Places and surroundings
Spots you'll mention every day: home, school, work, city.
| Hangul | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 집 | jip | home, house |
| 학교 | hakgyo | school |
| 회사 | hoesa | company, work |
| 병원 | byeongwon | hospital |
| 역 | yeok | station |
| 공항 | gonghang | airport |
| 식당 | sikdang | restaurant |
| 카페 | kape | café |
| 시장 | sijang | market |
| 도시 | dosi | city |
| 나라 | nara | country |
| 한국 | hanguk | South Korea |
| 미국 | miguk | United States |
| 여기 | yeogi | here |
| 거기 | geogi | there |
Food and drink
The classics of any Korean table, from rice to kimchi.
| Hangul | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 밥 | bap | cooked rice, meal |
| 물 | mul | water |
| 차 | cha | tea |
| 커피 | keopi | coffee |
| 고기 | gogi | meat |
| 생선 | saengseon | fish (food) |
| 야채 | yachae | vegetables |
| 과일 | gwail | fruit |
| 김치 | gimchi | kimchi |
| 라면 | ramyeon | ramen, instant noodles |
| 빵 | ppang | bread |
| 우유 | uyu | milk |
| 맥주 | maekju | beer |
| 음식 | eumsik | food, dish |
| 맛 | mat | taste, flavor |
The human body
To talk about pain, care, or simply describe what you see.
| Hangul | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 몸 | mom | body |
| 머리 | meori | head, hair |
| 얼굴 | eolgul | face |
| 눈 | nun | eye; snow (homonym) |
| 코 | ko | nose |
| 입 | ip | mouth |
| 귀 | gwi | ear |
| 손 | son | hand |
| 발 | bal | foot |
| 마음 | maeum | heart (figurative), mind |
Colors and nature
A palette to describe the sky, clothes, the scenery.
| Hangul | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 하늘 | haneul | sky |
| 바다 | bada | sea, ocean |
| 산 | san | mountain |
| 꽃 | kkot | flower |
| 나무 | namu | tree |
| 달 | dal | moon; month |
| 해 | hae | sun; year |
| 별 | byeol | star |
| 비 | bi | rain |
| 바람 | baram | wind |
| 빨강 | ppalgang | red |
| 파랑 | parang | blue |
| 노랑 | norang | yellow |
| 검정 | geomjeong | black |
| 하양 | hayang | white |
Essential adjectives (descriptive)
In Korean, adjectives conjugate like verbs. Always useful to describe what you see or feel.
| Hangul | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 크다 | keuda | to be big |
| 작다 | jakda | to be small |
| 많다 | manta | to be many, plentiful |
| 적다 | jeokda | to be few |
| 좋다 | jota | to be good |
| 나쁘다 | nappeuda | to be bad |
| 예쁘다 | yeppeuda | to be pretty |
| 맛있다 | masitta | to be delicious |
| 맛없다 | maseopta | to taste bad |
| 재미있다 | jaemiitta | to be fun, interesting |
| 재미없다 | jaemieopta | to be boring |
| 쉽다 | swipda | to be easy (ㅂ-irregular) |
| 어렵다 | eoryeopda | to be difficult (ㅂ-irregular) |
| 빠르다 | ppareuda | to be fast (르-irregular) |
| 느리다 | neurida | to be slow |
Frequently asked questions
Why are there two 'I's: 나 and 저?
나 is the casual 'I' used with close friends or someone younger. 저 is the polite 'I', the default when you're talking to someone you don't know, who's older, or a professional superior. Choosing the wrong one can feel rude, when in doubt, go with 저.
Why are there two words for 'older brother' (형 and 오빠)?
Korean distinguishes the speaker's gender: a male says 형 to his older brother, a female says 오빠. Same for older sister (male speaker: 누나, female speaker: 언니). This is a strong cultural rule, not bent in real life.
Are colors verbs or nouns in Korean?
Each Korean color has two forms: a noun (빨강 = the color red) and a descriptive verb/adjective (빨갛다 = to be red). To say 'a red apple', you use the participial form 빨간 사과. The list above gives the nouns; for adjectives, see the individual dictionary entries.
How do you turn a noun into a verb in Korean?
Many nouns become verbs by adding 하다 (to do): 공부 (study) → 공부하다 (to study), 사랑 (love) → 사랑하다 (to love), 노래 (song) → 노래하다 (to sing). That's why 하다 is one of the most productive verbs in Korean.
Do I need to learn Chinese characters (한자)?
Not to get started. Modern Korean is written almost entirely in hangeul, and you don't need hanja to speak or understand most texts. It's useful later to grasp the etymology of Sino-Korean words (~60% of vocabulary), but it's not a prerequisite.