Korean Numbers
Korean counts two ways. Money, dates and minutes use Sino-Korean, so 35,000 is 삼만오천 (sam-man-o-cheon). Age, hours and counting use native Korean, so 23 years old is 스물세 살 (seumul-se sal).
How to use
- Type a number such as 35000, or a Korean number such as 스물세, in the box. Commas are fine.
- Read the Sino-Korean form (used with 원, 분, 월, 번) and, for 1 to 99, the native form with its short counter form (한, 두, 세, 네, 스무).
- Press Listen to hear the reading in your browser's Korean voice, if your device has one.
- Switch to Practice for a quiz: pick prices, time, age, counting or plain numbers, choose the right reading and keep your score.
How it works
Sino-Korean numbers come from Chinese: 일 1, 이 2, 삼 3, 사 4, 오 5, 육 6, 칠 7, 팔 8, 구 9, 십 10, 백 100, 천 1,000. Read the digits with their place names and leave out 일 before 십, 백 and 천 (10 is 십, not 일십). Larger numbers group by four digits, not three: 만 is 10,000, 억 is 100,000,000 and 조 is 1,000,000,000,000. So 12,345,678 is 천이백삼십사만 오천육백칠십팔 (1,234 man, 5,678). 10,000 on its own is 만, but 100,000,000 is 일억.
Native Korean numbers have their own words: 하나 둘 셋 넷 다섯 여섯 일곱 여덟 아홉 열, then 스물 20, 서른 30, 마흔 40, 쉰 50, 예순 60, 일흔 70, 여든 80, 아흔 90. They run up to 99, and larger counts switch to Sino-Korean. Before a counter word, five forms shorten: 하나 → 한, 둘 → 두, 셋 → 세, 넷 → 네, 스물 → 스무. So 3 people is 세 명 and 21 years old is 스물한 살. Some counters take 석 or 넉 for 3 and 4 (석 달, 넉 달).
Which system to use depends on what you count. Native: age (살), hours of the clock (시), number of items, people and animals (개, 명, 마리, 잔, 권). Sino-Korean: money (원), minutes (분), dates (월, 일), years, phone numbers, floors, addresses, percentages and math. A clock time mixes both: 3:45 is 세 시 사십오 분. Romanization here is syllable by syllable (sam-cheon-o-baek), without the sound changes that happen when words are spoken.
Which system for which use
| Use | System | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Age | Native | 스물세 살 (23 years old) |
| Clock hour | Native | 세 시 (3 o'clock) |
| Counting things | Native | 두 개, 세 명, 네 마리 |
| Minutes | Sino | 사십오 분 (45 minutes) |
| Money | Sino | 삼천오백 원 (3,500 won) |
| Dates | Sino | 삼월 이십삼일 (23 March) |
| Phone number | Sino | 공일공 (010) |
| Floors, rooms | Sino | 삼 층 (3rd floor) |
Native numbers 1 to 10
| Number | Native | Before a counter | Sino |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 하나 | 한 | 일 |
| 2 | 둘 | 두 | 이 |
| 3 | 셋 | 세 | 삼 |
| 4 | 넷 | 네 | 사 |
| 5 | 다섯 | 다섯 | 오 |
| 6 | 여섯 | 여섯 | 육 |
| 7 | 일곱 | 일곱 | 칠 |
| 8 | 여덟 | 여덟 | 팔 |
| 9 | 아홉 | 아홉 | 구 |
| 10 | 열 | 열 | 십 |
FAQ
When do I use Sino-Korean and when native Korean numbers?
Use native numbers for age, the hour, and counting things (한 개, 두 명). Use Sino-Korean for money, minutes, dates, phone numbers, floors and measurements. Time uses both: the hour is native and the minutes are Sino-Korean.
Why are the units 만, 억, 조 every four digits?
Korean follows the Chinese system of grouping by 10,000 (man), not by 1,000. So 1,000,000 is 백만 (100 man), and 100 million is 일억. Reading a big number gets easier if you split it into groups of four digits from the right.
Is it 공 or 영 for zero?
Both are Sino-Korean zero. 영 is the general word and the one used in math and scores. 공 is common when reading phone numbers (010 is 공일공) and in broadcasts.
What does 스무 mean?
스무 is the form of 20 used before a counter word, as in 스무 살 (20 years old) and 스무 명. On its own 20 is 스물, and from 21 on the final digit changes instead, like 스물한 살.
Does the tool handle numbers above 99 in native Korean?
No. Native Korean numbers stop at 99 in everyday use (아흔아홉). For 100 and above Koreans use Sino-Korean, so the native form shows only for 1 to 99.