Korean Sentence Practice: Lesson 9 (Numbers)

There are two methods to express numbers in Korean. One method uses Sino-Korean numbers, and the other uses native Korean numbers.

Sino-Korean Numbers

Sino-Korean numbers are used for telephone numbers, bus route numbers, height, weight, address numbers, years, months, minutes, seconds, and prices.

A few things to note:

1. Large Numbers: In Korean, large numbers are read based on units of ten thousand (만) instead of thousands (천). For example:

– 123,456 is interpreted as 12,3456 and read as 12만 3456 (십이만 삼천사백오십육).
– Similarly, 1,234,567 is interpreted as 123,4567 and read as 123만 4567 (일백이십삼만 사천오백육십칠).

2. Pronouncing Numbers Starting with 1: When a number is larger than 1 and begins with 1, the initial 1 (일) is not pronounced. The exception is official financial documents like bank checks or bonds.

– 10: 십 (not 일십)
– 110: 백십 (not 일백십)                   
– 1,110: 천백십 (not 일천백십)

3. Special Pronunciation for 6: Numbers like 16, 26, 36, etc., are pronounced with a nasal sound for 6:

– 16: 십륙 (not 십육)
– 26: 이십륙 (not 이십육)
– 36: 삼십륙 (not 삼십육)
– 96: 구십륙 (not 구십육)

4. Pronouncing Zero: The digit 0 is pronounced as either 공 or 영. For telephone numbers, 공 is used.

– 5609-8345: 오육공구[에] 팔삼사오
– 010-1234-7096: 공일공 일이삼사[에] 칠공구육

5. Reading Telephone Numbers: There are two ways to read telephone numbers.

– 1304-3588: 일삼공사[에] 삼오팔팔
– 1304-3588: 천삼백사[국에] 삼천오백팔십팔

Example Sentences

What floor is it on?                                 몇 층에 있나요?

It’s on the 7^th floor.                                 7층에 있어요. (칠 층)           

What is your phone number?            전화번호가 뭐예요?

It’s 010-303-4567.                                  010-303-4567 이예요. (공일공 삼공삼에 사오육칠)

Which bus goes there?                        몇 번 버스가 거기로 가나요?

The bus 205 goes there.                       205번 버스가 거기로 가요. (이백오번)

How much is this bag?                        이 가방은 얼마예요?

It’s 300,000 won.                                    삼십만원이예요. (삼십만원)

How tall are you?                                   키가 어떻게 돼요?
(What is your height?)                          

I’m 180cm.                                               백 팔십 센티미터예요. (백 팔십 센티미터)

Native Korean Numbers

Native Korean numbers are used to express time and units. They are typically used with unit nouns that specify what is being counted, such as:

– 명 (number of people)
– 마리 (number of animals)
– 개 (number of things)
– 살 (age)
– 병 (number of bottles)
– 잔 (number of glasses or cups)

When these nouns are used, the Korean numbers that come before them are written in slightly different forms:

– 하나 becomes 한 (e.g., 학생 한 명)
– 둘 becomes 두 (e.g., 개 두 마리)
– 셋 becomes 세 (e.g., 커피 세 잔)
– 넷 becomes 네 (e.g., 콜라 네 병)
– 스물 becomes 스무 (e.g., 사과 스무 개)

Example Sentences with Native Korean Numbers

How many family members do you have?           가족이 몇 명이에요?

We are a family of four.                                              우리 가족은 네 명이에요. 

How old is your younger sister?                              여동생은 몇 살이에요?

My younger sister is 20 years old.                           여동생은 스무 살이에요.

Two cheeseburgers and two cokes, please.        치즈버거 두개, 콜라 두개 주세요.

There are four students in my class.                     제 반에는 네 명의 학생이 있어요.

Today is my parents’ 30^th wedding anniversary.         
오늘은 우리 부모님 서른 번째 결혼 기념일이에요.

I have three dogs.                                                    저는 개가 세 마리 있어요.

There are 20 pieces in a box.                                한 상자에 스무 조각이 들어 있어요.

I’ll have a cup of coffee, please.                           커피 한 잔 주세요.