Korean by construction
Korean · The method

Bricks, rules, and sentences of your own.

Every word you learn is a reusable brick. Checked rules combine them: you build correct sentences you never learnt by heart, then you transform them, listen to them and meet them again in real situations.

The method

Six families of bricks

Every word is shown in Hangeul, with its romanization, its audio and a meaning in context.

People
저jeo 당신dangsin 그geu 그녀geunyeo 우리uri

The subject takes 는 or 은, the topic particle. It is often left out when the context is clear.

Actions
마시다masida 먹다meokda 가다gada 있다itda 좋아하다joahada

The verb always comes at the end of the sentence. Its polite ending -요 is the same for every person.

Things and places
차cha 물mul 빵ppang 한국hanguk 식당sikdang

Nouns never change form: a particle attached after them shows their role (를 / 을 for the object, 에 for the destination).

Operators
안an 네ne 어디eodi 뭐mwo 도do

The negation 안 goes right before the verb; a question keeps the word order of the statement.

Patterns
저는 차를 마셔요S + O + V 마시고 싶어요V-고 + 싶어요 차를 마셔요?S + O + V ?

The rules for putting words together: the verb closes the sentence, and particles show who does what.

Sounds and writing
ㅓeo ㅡeu ㄱg ㅋk ㄲkk

An alphabet of twenty-four letters grouped into syllables, three series of consonants (plain, aspirated, tense) and vowels such as ㅓ and ㅡ that take practice.

In real life

The same bricks, everywhere

At a restaurant, on the move or meeting someone new, a few bricks are enough to make yourself understood.

the traveller orders at the counter of a Seoul café, a menu written in Hangeul on the wall, a cup in front of him
At the café
아메리카노 한 잔 주세요.amerikano han jan juseyoAn americano, please.
the traveller on a Seoul subway platform, in front of a line map in Hangeul and English
Getting around
지하철역이 어디예요?jihacheollyeogi eodiyeyoWhere is the subway station?
the traveller chatting with a young Korean woman in the courtyard of Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul
Meeting people
한국 음식 좋아해요?hanguk eumsik joahaeyoDo you like Korean food?
A session

Fifteen minutes a day

Adjustable from 5 to 30 minutes. Missing a day costs you nothing: your progress waits for you.

Learner with earphones, phone in hand
3 min
Review
Today’s reviews, spaced according to how well you did.
4 min
New bricks
Two or three words, with their audio and romanization.
5 min
Build
Five sentences to build or transform, with mistakes explained.
3 min
Listen
A question you hear, an answer to give.
the same traveller shares a Korean barbecue with friends in the evening, around a grill table in a small Seoul restaurant

Lay your first brick.

Choose your goal and your pace, and the first lesson starts straight away.

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