Hangul Lesson 2: All about Batchim and Pronunciation rules

🎉 Welcome to the Magical World of Batchim and Pronounciation rules! 🎉

Hey there, future Korean masters! 😎

Ready to dive into one of the quirkiest, funniest, and sometimes-most-frustrating (but don’t worry, we’ve got your back) aspects of the Korean language? Introducing… the Batchim!

Think of Batchim as the secret sauce that gives Korean its unique flavor. It’s that sneaky consonant hiding at the end of a syllable, waiting to surprise you when you least expect it. Some say Batchim is like the mischievous little sibling of the Korean syllable family, always changing and keeping you on your toes!

But fear not! By the end of this lesson, you and Batchim will be BFFs (Best Friends Forever… or should I say Batchim Friends Forever? 😉).

So, tighten your seatbelts, or… your Hangul hats? Let’s embark on this roller-coaster of Batchim fun!

Ready. Set. Batchim! 🚀

Hangul Lesson 1	Introduction to Korean Letter
Hangul Lesson 2	All about Batchim
Hangul Lesson 3	Reading Korean Words

How do Korean syllable blocks work?

Before we look at what is Batchim, let’s have a look at how we combine letters into syllables in Korean.

As you can see from the above picture, there are two ways we can construct the blocks.

• A syllable or a block will ALWAYS start with a consonant. If the first sound in the syllable is a vowel, we still have to place “ㅇ” (the silent consonant) before it.

• The consonant is then followed by a vowel which is either placed next to the consonant or under it (do not worry, there is actually a simple rule to determine which way we place the vowel).

• Sometimes, your consonant and vowel will be enough and there is no final consonant placed at the bottom (no batchim) like in 차 (car), 배 (pear), 나 (I) or 가 (go).

• If, however there is a final consonant, we simply place it at the bottom 김 (Kim), 말 (word/speech), 발 (foot).

How to determine whether to place a vowel next to a consonant or under it?

It’s simple,

• if the vowel consists of a long vertical line, we place it next to the vowel (ㅏ,ㅓ,ㅑ,ㅕ,ㅔ,ㅖ,ㅐ,ㅒ,ㅣ).
• if the vowel consists of a long horizontal line, we place it under the vowel (ㅗ,ㅛ,ㅜ,ㅠ,ㅡ)

Makes sense right? The long vertical lines fit better next to the consonant and the long horizontal lines fit better under the consonant. It’s kind of like playing Tetris.

What is Batchim?

So, now that we know which vowels to place where, let’s have a look at what is Batchim. The term “Batchim” refers to the final consonant or consonants that appear at the end of a syllable block in the Korean writing system, Hangul.

받침 (batchim) “supports” and “completes” the first syllable and “connects” it with the next syllable to make the flow easier and natural so there is a good reason behind it. It will ALWAYS be a consonant as per the above. You will NEVER have a vowel at the bottom, NEVER, no exceptions!

In summary, the Batchim is an integral part of the Hangul writing system and plays a pivotal role in the pronunciation, meaning, and grammatical structure of Korean words.

So, we can have 4 more possible syllable blocks structures making 6 types of syllable blocks in total.

Types of Batchim (받침)

Now that we know what Batchim is, let’s have a look at the different types of Batchim. The Batchim, or the final consonant(s) in a Korean syllable block, can be categorized based on its composition. There are two main types:

Single Consonant Batchim (단일 받침)

These are syllables that have just one consonant at the end. The single consonants that can be used as Batchim in modern Korean are:

• ㄱ (g/k)
• ㄴ (n)
• ㄷ (d/t)
• ㄹ (r/l)
• ㅁ (m)
• ㅂ (b/p)
• ㅅ (t)
• ㅇ (silent when at the end, but carries the sound to the next syllable if it starts with a vowel)
• ㅈ (t)
• ㅊ (t)
• ㅋ (k)
• ㅌ (t)
• ㅍ (p)
• ㅎ (t in modern Korean, but can influence the sound of the next syllable in certain situations)

NOTE

It’s important to note that while there are 14 consonants listed above, not all of them have unique sounds when they’re used as Batchim. For instance, both ㅈ and ㅊ are pronounced as “t” when they are in the Batchim position or ㄴ is always pronounced as “n” regardless whether it is in the Batchim position or not.

There are 16 consonants that can be placed at the bottom but there are only 7 different sounds. We can summarise them as per below.

Double Consonant Batchim (이중 받침)

These are syllables that have two consonants at the end. There are a few combinations of double consonants that can appear as Batchim:

• ㄳ (gs/k) – Pronounced as “k”
• ㄵ (nj/t) – Pronounced as “n”
• ㄶ (nh/t) – Pronounced as “n”
• ㄺ (rg/k) – Pronounced as “k”
• ㄻ (rm) – Pronounced as “m”
• ㄼ (rb/p) – Pronounced as “m”
• ㄽ (rs/t) – Pronounced as “t”
• ㄾ (rt/t) – Pronounced as “t”
• ㄿ (rp/p) – Pronounced as “p”
• ㅀ (rh/t) – Pronounced as “t”
• ㅄ (bs/p) – Pronounced as “p”

When a syllable with a double consonant Batchim is followed by another syllable starting with a vowel, the second consonant of the Batchim generally “moves” to become the initial consonant of the next syllable. (We will cover this further down below.)

Understanding both single and double consonant Batchim is crucial for correct pronunciation and comprehension of the Korean language. These types also play an essential role in the language’s grammar, especially when it comes to verb conjugation and word formation.

Examples

• 꽃 (flower) – the “ㅊ” batchim will be pronounced as “t” rather than the standard “ch” (ggot).
• 옷 (clothes) – the “ㅅ” batchim will be pronounced as “t” rather than the standard “s” (ot).
• 약 (medicine) – the “ㄱ” batchim will be pronounced as “k” rather than the standard “g” (yak).
• 밥 (rice) – the “ㅂ” batchim will be pronounced as “p” rather than the standard “b” (bap).
• 닭 (chicken) – the “ㄺ” batchim will be pronounced as “k” (dak).
• 삶 (life) – the “ㄻ” batchim will be pronounced as “m” (salm).

Pronounciation Rules for Batchim

So far, we have learned that when a consonant is placed at the bottom, it changes sound.

However

The pronunciation of a Batchim consonant in Korean often changes depending on whether it’s followed by another consonant or a vowel in the subsequent syllable. Let’s delve into the details:

When the Batchim is followed by a consonant (other than ㅇ) in the next syllable:

The sound is as what we saw further up.

있다 (to be) – the “ㅆ” batchim will be pronounced as “t” rather than the standard “s” (ittda).

BUT

When the Batchim is followed by a consontant “ㅇ” in the next syllable:

The Batchim sound transitions smoothly into the vowel, effectively linking the two syllables.

• Example: “밥” (bap) + “이” (i) = “밥이” (babi). In this case, the Batchim ㅂ in “밥” transitions smoothly into the vowel ㅣ, making it sound like “babi.” instead of “bapi”.

Since the difference between “b” and “p” can be very subtle (in other languages too, not just Korean), let’s have a look at a more obvious example.

Examples

꽃

When we take the word “꽃” as an example, on its own it is pronounced as “ggot”. It is not followed by another syllable.

However, when we add the subject marking particle to it, it becomes “꽃이” and now you can think of it as the “ㅊ” sound being transferred over to the next syllable and it becomes “ggochi”.

Please note the word is still written as “꽃”. The above is just to explain that the sound moves and therefore changes.

옷

옷 (clothes) is pronounced as “ot”.

BUT

When we add the subject marking particle 이, it becomes 옷이 and the “ㅅ” will make “sh” sound rather than the “t” sound..

있다

In this case, 있 (itt) is followed by another consonant that is not “ㅇ”. Which means that the usual batchim rules apply and it is pronounced as “ittda” (to have/to be).

HOWEVER

When we conjugate this verb (more on this in another lesson) to 있어 (have/be in present tense), the pronunciation changes to “isseo”. This is because “있” is followed by the consonant “ㅇ” and therefore “ㅆ” keeps its original sound.

찾다

찾다 is another verb (to find). In this case, 찾 (chat) is followed by another consonant that is not “ㅇ”. Which means that the usual batchim rules apply and it is pronounced as “chatda”.

HOWEVER

When we conjugate this verb to 찾아 (find in present tense), the pronunciation changes to “chaja”. This is because “chaj” is followed by the consonant “ㅇ” and therefore “j” keeps its original sound.

So to sum up the first pronounciation rule….

If the Batchim is followed by another syllable and the syllable starts with any consonant apart from “ㅇ”, the Batchim pronounciation applies.

BUT

If the Batchim is followed by another syllable and the syllable starts with consonant “ㅇ”, the non-batchim pronounciation applies.

Rule number 2

ㅅ + ㅣ/ㅑ/ㅕ/ㅔ/ㅖ/ㅒ/ㅛ/ㅠ

When ㅅ meets the above vowels, the pronunciation changes to sh.

This does NOT apply to the vowels ㅏ/ㅗ/ㅜ

That is because this rule only happens if the ㅅ is followed by an ee sound.

Think of it this way:

• ㅣ+ ㅏ = ㅑ so there is an ee in this vowel
• ㅣ + ㅓ = ㅕ so there is an ee in this vowel
• ㅣ + ㅖ = ㅖ so there is an ee in this vowel

ㅏ, ㅗ and ㅜ are all simple vowels and therefore do NOT have ㅣ(ee) in them.

• 십 –> ship
• 숖 –> shop

Rule number 3

When ㄱ or ㅋ meets ㄴ or ㅁ. (GKNM – Gimbab keeps nourishing me)

• ㄱ batchim is followed by ㄴ then ㄱ is pronounced as ㅇ
• ㄱ batchim is followed by ㅁ then ㄱ is pronounced as ㅇ
• ㅋ batchim is followed by ㄴ then ㅋ is pronounced as ㅇ
• ㅋ batchim is followed by ㅁ then ㅋ is pronounced as ㅇ
• ㄴ batchim is followed by ㄱ then ㄴ is pronounced as ㅇ

• 작년 –> 장년
• 식물 –> 싱물
• 국민 –> 궁민
• 식노 –> 싱노
• 부엌 냄새 –> 부엉 냄새
• 부엌 문 –> 부엉 문
• 한국 –> 항국

Rule number 4

When ㄴ,ㅂ or ㅍ meets ㄴ,ㅁ or ㅂ, the batchim sounds changes to ㅁ. (NPPNMP –New Phrases, Please! No More Pronounciation!)

• ㄴ batchim is followed by ㅁ then ㄴ is pronounced as ㅁ
• ㄴ batchim is followed by ㅂ then ㄴ is pronounced as ㅁ
• ㅂ batchim is followed by ㄴ then ㅂ is pronounced as ㅁ
• ㅂ batchim is followed by ㅁ then ㅂ is pronounced as ㅁ
• ㅍ batchim is followed by ㄴ then ㅍ is pronounced as ㅁ
• ㅍ batchim is followed by ㅁ then ㅍ is pronounced as ㅁ

• 선물 –> 섬물
• 전부 –> 점부
• 합니다 –> 함니다
• 일곱 마리 –> 일곰 마리
• 앞니 –> 암니
• 앞문 –> 암문

Rule number 5

When ㄴ and ㄹ meets, then changes to ㄹ. (NRRN – Noodles Required, Ramyeon Night)

• ㄴ batchim is followed by ㄹ then ㄴ is pronounced as ㄹ
• ㄹ batchim is followed by ㄴ then ㄴ is pronounced as ㄹ

• 연락 –> 열락
• 설날 –> 설랄

When ㅁ and ㄹ meets, the ㄹ changes to ㄴ. (MRMN – Munching Ramyeon, Memorizing Nouns).

• ㅁ batchim is followed by ㄹ then ㄹ is pronounced as ㄴ.

• 심리 –> 심니

When ㅂ and ㄹ meets, the ㅂ changes to ㅁ. (BRBM – Bibimbap Really Boosts Memory).

• ㅁ batchim is followed by ㄹ then ㄹ is pronounced as ㄴ.

• 합리적인 –> 함리적인

When ㄱ and ㄹ meets, the ㄱ changes to ㅇ and ㄹ changes to ㄴ.

• ㄱ batchim is followed by ㄹ then ㄱ changes to ㅇ and ㄹ changes to ㄴ

• 기억력이 –> 기엉녁이

Rule number 6

When a base consonant, double consonant or a strong consonant meets a base consonant, that consonant becomes pronounced as a double consonant.

Base Consonants: ㄱ,ㄷ,ㅂ,ㅅ,ㅈ

Strong consonants: ㅋ,ㅌ,ㅍ,ㅊ

• 학교 –> 학꾜
• 먹자 –> 먹짜
• 식당 –> 식땅
• 받다 –> 받따
• 옷방 –> 옷빵
• 박사 –> 박싸
• 찾다 –> 찾따
• 낯설다 –> 낯썰다

Rule number 7

Batchim + ㅎ

When Batchim meets ㅎ, it changes the consonant to a strong consonant.

• When ㄴ meets ㅎ, we drop ㅎ and just say ㄴ
• When ㄹ meets ㅎ, we drop ㅎ and just say ㄹ
• When ㅁ meets ㅎ, we drop ㅎ and just say ㅁ
• When ㄱ meets ㅎ, we drop ㅎ and say ㅋ
• When ㅂ meets ㅎ, we drop ㅎ and say ㅍ
• When ㅎ meets ㅈ, we drop ㅎ and say ㅊ
• When ㅅ meets ㅎ, we drop ㅎ and say ㅌ
• When ㅎ meets ㄷ, we drop ㅎ and say ㅌ

The rules for this one are easy to remember as ㄴ,ㄹ,ㅁ do not have strong consonant equivalent and also do not change their sounds when in Batchim position.

ㄱ,ㅂ,ㅈ and ㄷ have a strong equivalent and so the ㅎ makes them into strong consonants.

ㅅ does not not have a strong equivalent BUT does changes it’s sound to “T” when in Batchim position and so the pronunciation becomes ㅌ.

• 좋다 –> 조타
• 괜찮다 –> 괜찬타
• 북한 –> 부칸
• 백호 –> 배코
• 착하다 –> 차카다
• 복잡하다 –> 복자파다
• 못 해요 –> 모 태요
• 좋죠 –> 조

Rule number 8

ㄹ + Base consonant

When ㄹ meets a base consonant, it changes the base consonant to a double consonant.

• 할게 –> 할께
• 밀당 –> 밀땅
• 물가 –> 물까
• 술병 –> 술뼝

Rule number 9

I like to call this last one “The dinosaur rule” since 공룡 means dinosaur.

• When ㄱ meets ㄹ, the ㄱ becomes ㅇ and the ㄹ becomes ㄴ.
• When ㅇ meets ㄹ, the ㄹ becomes ㄴ.

• 공룡 –> 공뇽
• 백리 –> 뱅니
• 복리 –> 봉니
• 동료 –> 동뇨

Rule number 10

ㄷ,ㅅ,ㅈ,ㅊ,ㅌ,ㅎ + ㄴ =ㄴ    

ㄷ,ㅅ,ㅈ,ㅊ,ㅌ,ㅎ + ㅁ =ㄴ

 These all consonants sound like “T” when they are as batchim so when the ‘T’ sound meets “ㄴ” or “ㅁ” it just becomes an “ㄴ” sound.

Rule number 11

Consonant + ㄴ then the consonant changes to ㄴ as well.

Only used when there is no other rule.

For example, 합니다 already follows a rule mentioned previously changing the pronunciation to 함니다.

BUT

맛나 doesn’t fall under any of the previously mentioned rules and so this rule applies and changes the pronunciation to 만나.

• 있는 –> 인는
• 몇년 –> 면년
• 놓는 –> 논는
• 빛나 –> 빈나

Irregulars

There are exceptions to these rules but most of these are so common that you will learn them by just hearing them.