LinguaA third letter in the block
A block can hold a third letter, and it goes on the floor, under the other two. Korean calls it the 받침 – the "support" – and it is always a consonant. The block does not grow to make room: the two letters above simply shift up and flatten, so the square stays the same square.
Three letters in one square: consonant, vowel, and the support on the floor.
The vowel is flat here, so the first two letters stack and the support still takes the floor.
On the floor, a consonant loses most of its detail: whatever letter is written there, the sound you hear is one of only seven. ㅂ and ㅍ both end a block the same way, and so do ㄷ ㅅ ㅈ ㅊ ㅌ ㅎ. The spelling still tells you which word it is; the ear does not have to.
| Written on the floor | Heard as | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ㅂ ㅍ | ㅂ | 밥 |
| ㄷ ㅅ ㅈ ㅊ ㅌ ㅎ | ㄷ | 옷 |
| ㄱ ㅋ | ㄱ | 책 |
| ㄴ | ㄴ | 산 |
| ㄹ | ㄹ | 물 |
| ㅁ | ㅁ | 밤 |
| ㅇ | ㅇ | 강 |
산a mountain
강a river
Words in this lesson
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 밥 | cooked rice, meal | 밥이 따뜻해요. The rice is warm. |
| 물 | water | 물이 차가워요. The water is cold. |
| 산 | mountain | 산이 높아요. The mountain is high. |
| 집 | house, home | 집이 가까워요. The house is near. |
| 강 | river | 강이 길어요. The river is long. |
| 옷 | clothes | 옷이 새것이에요. The clothes are new. |
Exercises
This lesson has 9 exercises in the app:
- multiple choice: 4
- trace the letter: 2
- fill the gap: 1
- match the pairs: 1
- listen and type: 1
Try the first one
Which block has a third letter on the floor?
The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.