Practice the sonorant sounds
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| This is the ㅁ(m) sound, this is the ㄴ (n) sound, this is the ㅇ(ng) sound, and this is the ㄹ(r) sound. By the end of this lesson, you'll be practicing them and on your way to perfect pronunciation! |
| I'm Joyce, and this is Korean Pronunciation Through Minimal Pairs. |
| The first is ㅁ(m). This is the ㅁ(m) sound in 머리 (meo-ri) "head," 마음 (ma-eum) "heart, mind," and other words. |
| ㄴ (n) is the ㄴ (n) sound in 눈 (nun) "eye/snow," |
| 나라 (nara) "country," and other words. |
| ㅇ(ng) is the ㅇ(ng) sound in 방 (bang) "room," |
| 영화 (yeong-hwa) "movie," and other words. |
| ㄹ is the ㄹ sound in 길 (gil) "road, path," 물론 (mul-lon) "of course," and other words. |
| ㅁ ㄴ ㅇ are nasal sounds, and ㄹ is called liquid. |
| To make theㅁ(m) sound: press your lips together and let the sound resonate through your nose. The sound should be voiced and similar to m in "mom." |
| ㅁ |
| [3 sec pause] |
| ㅁ (enunciated) |
| [3 sec pause] |
| ㅁ |
| To make the ㄴ (n) sound: place the tip of your tongue against the ridge just behind your upper front teeth, and let the sound resonate through your nose. It should sound like n in "no." |
| ㄴ |
| [3 sec pause] |
| ㄴ (enunciated) |
| [3 sec pause] |
| ㄴ |
| To make theㅇ(ng) sound: raise the back of your tongue to touch the velum, which is the soft part of the roof of your mouth, and let the sound resonate through your nose. |
| Think of the 'ng' in the word song. Instead of using the tip of your tongue, let the back of your tongue rise slightly toward the back of your throat. Keep the contact light and soft, don't press hard and let the sound vibrate through your nose. |
| ㅇ |
| [3 sec pause] |
| ㅇ (enunciated) |
| [3 sec pause] |
| ㅇ |
| At the beginning of a syllable: Pronounce ㄹ with a quick, light flap of the tongue against the alveolar ridge, similar to the tt in the English word "butter." For example, in 라면 (ramyeon), ㄹ sounds like a light r. |
| At the end of a syllable: Pronounce ㄹ with the tongue pressed against the alveolar ridge, similar to the l in "call." For example, in 물 (mul), ㄹ sounds like an l. |
| Word-initial nasals in Korean are different from those in English, French, Italian, or Japanese. Compared to those languages, Korean word-initial nasals are weaker and shorter. |
| Listen carefully and repeat after me. |
| 머리 나라 사랑 |
| [3 sec pause] |
| 머리 나라 사랑 (enunciated) |
| [3 sec pause] |
| 머리 나라 사랑 |
| Notice that Korean nasals don't sound very nasally when they're at the start of a word, and they don't make the vowels before them sound very nasal when they're at the end of a syllable. |
| Listen and repeat or speak along with me. |
| Ready? |
| 밤 (bam)/ 반 (ban)/ 방 (bang)/ 발 (bal) |
| "night"/"class"/ "room"/"foot" |
| (space for repetition) |
| 밤 (bam)/ 반 (ban)/ 방 (bang)/ 발 (bal) |
| "night"/"class"/ "room"/"foot" |
| 삼 (sam)/산 (san)/상 (sang)/살 (sal) |
| "three"/"mountain"/"table"/"flesh" |
| (space for repetition) |
| 삼 (sam)/산 (san)/상 (sang)/살 (sal) |
| "three"/"mountain"/"table"/"flesh" |
| 맘 (mam)/만 (man)/망 (mang)/말 (mal) |
| "heart, mind" (informal for 마음)/"ten thousand"/"net"/"horse" |
| (space for repetition) |
| 맘 (mam)/만 (man)/망 (mang)/말 (mal) |
| "heart, mind" (informal for 마음)/"ten thousand"/"net"/"horse" |
| Let's review. Respond to the prompts by speaking aloud. Then, repeat after me, focussing on pronunciation. |
| Do you remember the sound pronounced by pressing your lips together and humming through the nose? |
| (3) |
| (2) |
| (1) |
| ㅁ |
| (1) |
| ㅁ |
| Do you remember the sound pronounced by touching the tip of your tongue against the ridge just behind your upper front teeth and humming through the nose? |
| (3) |
| (2) |
| (1) |
| ㄴ |
| (1) |
| ㄴ |
| How about the sound pronounced by touching the back of your tongue to the velum and humming through the nose? |
| (3) |
| (2) |
| (1) |
| ㅇ |
| (1) |
| ㅇ |
| And the sound pronounced by flapping the tongue against the alveolar ridge at the beginning of a syllable and pressing the tongue against the alveolar ridge at the end of a syllable? |
| (3) |
| (2) |
| (1) |
| ㄹ |
| (1) |
| ㄹ |
| Let's practice. |
| Compare the sounds in these four words. |
| 밤 (bam)/ 반 (ban)/ 방 (bang)/ 발 (bal) |
| "night"/"class"/ "room"/"foot" |
| (1) |
| 밤 (bam)/ 반 (ban)/ 방 (bang)/ 발 (bal) |
| "night"/"class"/ "room"/"foot" |
| (1) |
| Let's try another. |
| 삼 (sam)/산 (san)/상 (sang)/살 (sal) |
| "three"/"mountain"/"table"/"flesh" |
| (1) |
| 삼 (sam)/산 (san)/상 (sang)/살 (sal) |
| "three"/"mountain"/"table"/"flesh" |
| (1) |
| Now, listen to the following sentences. |
| 밤이 깊었어요. |
| (Bam-i gip-eoss-eo-yo.) |
| "The night has deepened." |
| (3 sec pause) |
| 우리 반 친구들이 많아요. |
| (U-ri ban chin-gu-deur-i man-a-yo.) |
| "There are many friends in our class." |
| (3 sec pause) |
| 방이 따뜻해요. |
| (Bang-i tta-tteut-hae-yo.) |
| "The room is warm." |
| (3 sec pause) |
| 발이 아파요. |
| (Bar-i a-pa-yo.) |
| "My foot hurts." |
| (1) |
| 밤, 반, 방 , 발 |
| Read the following sentence out loud, focussing on the different sounds. |
| (pause) |
| 저는 삼 학년이에요. |
| (Jeo-neun sam hang-nyeon-i-e-yo.) |
| "I'm in the third grade." |
| (3 sec pause) |
| 산을 오르는 건 힘들어요. |
| (San-eul o-reu-neun geon him-deur-eo-yo.) |
| "Climbing the mountain is difficult." |
| (3 sec pause) |
| 책이 상 위에 있어요. |
| (Chaeg-i sang wi-e iss-eo-yo.) |
| "A book is on the table." |
| (3 sec pause) |
| 살이 많이 쪘어요. |
| (Sar-i man-i jjyeoss-eo-yo.) |
| "I gained a lot of flesh (weight)." |
| 삼, 산, 상, 살 |
| By the way, if you watched til the end |
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