Korean Particles
Korean has particles that do not exist in English. These particles allow the listener or reader to know exactly what the subject, object, and topic of a Korean sentence are.
This is done in English with word order. ex. The monkey(subject) eats a banana(object).
This is also done in Korean as you learned in part 9 of How to Read Korean Hangul. ex. The monkey(subject) a banana(object) eats.
Korean sentences can become very long or confusing which is true of any language. When this happens, Korean particles are used to organize and make sentence meaning clear. The particles are not used when it is clear who or what the topic, subject, and object are in spoken Korean sentences.
In formal written Korean, the particles are always used.
Korean Subject Particles 이 and 가
이 and 가 are subject particles. Their function is to indicate the subject in a Korean sentence.
Particles are attached directly to nouns.
When to attach 이 to a noun:
Words that end with a consonant use 이. ex. 달+이 = 달이 = moon
It is very important to remember the ㅇ pronunciation rule from part 8.
♦ “The final consonant(받침) that comes before a syllable starting with the letter ㅇ is pronounced in place of the letter ㅇ.”
Therefore the pronunciation of 달이 = [다리]
When to attach 가 to a noun:
Words that end with a vowel use 가.ex. 비+가 = 비가 = rain
Korean Particles 이 and 가 Examples
| Word | Particle | Word+Particle | Pronunciation | English Translation |
| 달 | 이 | 달이 | [다리] | moon |
| 사람 | 이 | 사람이 | [사라미] | person |
| 머리 | 가 | 머리가 | [머리가] | head |
| 차 | 가 | 차가 | [차가] | car |
Korean Topic Particles 은 and 는
은 and 는 are topic particles. Their function is to indicate the topic in a Korean sentence.
Particles are attached directly to nouns.
When to attach 은 to a noun:
Words that end with a consonant use 은. ex. 달+은 = 달은 = moon
It is very important to remember the ㅇ pronunciation rule from part 8.
♦ “The final consonant(받침) that comes before a syllable starting with the letter ㅇ is pronounced in place of the letter ㅇ.”
Therefore the pronunciation of 달은 = [다른]
When to attach 는 to a noun:
Words that end with a vowel use 는.ex. 비+는 = 비는 = rain
Korean Particles 은 and 는 Examples
| Word | Particle | Word+Particle | Pronunciation | English Translation |
| 달 | 은 | 달은 | [다른] | moon |
| 사람 | 은 | 사람은 | [사라믄] | person |
| 머리 | 는 | 머리는 | [머리는] | head |
| 차 | 는 | 차는 | [차는] | car |
Korean Topic Particles 은 and 는
은 and 는 mark the topic of a sentence which usually is also the subject of a sentence. For this reason 은 and 는 often replace 이 and 가 in sentences.
이 and 가 simply indicate the subject of a sentence.
So why use 은 or 는 in place of 이 or 가?
은 and 는 are used for emphasis and comparison.
Uses of 은 and 는:
- “as for”
ex. 남자는 = as for the man
ex. sentence 남자는 행복해요. = As for this man, he is happy.
- “opposed to other”
ex. 남자는 = Opposed to other men, this man
ex. sentence 남자는 행복해요. = Opposed to other men, this man is happy.
- “different from other”
ex. 남자는 = Different from other men, this man
ex. sentence 남자는 행복해요. = Different from other men, this man is happy.
- “compared to other”
ex. 남자는 = Compared to other men, this man
ex. sentence 남자는 행복해요. = Compared to other men, this man is happy.
- “about”
ex. 남자는 = About this man
ex. sentence 남자는 행복해요. = About this man, he is happy.
Korean Object Particles 을 and 를
을 and 를 are subject particles. Their function is to indicate the object in a Korean sentence.
Particles are attached directly to nouns.
When to attach 을 to a noun:
Words that end with a consonant use 을. ex. 달+을 = 달을 = moon
It is very important to remember the ㅇ pronunciation rule from part 8.
♦ “The final consonant(받침) that comes before a syllable starting with the letter ㅇ is pronounced in place of the letter ㅇ.”
Therefore the pronunciation of 달을 = [다를]
When to attach 를 to a noun:
Words that end with a vowel use 를.ex. 비+를 = 비를 = rain
Korean Particles 을 and 를 Examples
| Word | Particle | Word+Particle | Pronunciation | English Translation |
| 달 | 을 | 달을 | [다를] | moon |
| 사람 | 을 | 사람을 | [사라믈] | person |
| 머리 | 를 | 머리를 | [머리를] | head |
| 차 | 를 | 차를 | [차를] | car |
Congratulations! 축하합니다!
You have finished the Hello In Korean Guide for How to Read Korean Hangul.
You should now be able to pick up any level 1 Korean learning resource and jump right in.
There are exceptions to rules in every language and Korean is no different.
Thank you so much for learning to read Korean Hangul at www.helloinkorean.com and good luck on your journey to becoming fluent in Korean.
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