9. Korean Time Expressions
Time expressions are fundamental to any conversation. In Korean, they are used to indicate when an action has occurred, is occurring, or will occur. Let's explore some of the most common and important time expressions in the Korean language.
1. Days of the Week
The days of the week in Korean are based on the Sino-Korean system. They are:
- Monday: 월요일 (wol-yo-il)
- Tuesday: 화요일 (hwa-yo-il)
- Wednesday: 수요일 (su-yo-il)
- Thursday: 목요일 (mok-yo-il)
- Friday: 금요일 (geum-yo-il)
- Saturday: 토요일 (to-yo-il)
- Sunday: 일요일 (il-yo-il)
2. Months of the Year
The months of the year in Korean are also based on the Sino-Korean system. They are:
- January: 1월 (il-wol)
- February: 2월 (i-wol)
- March: 3월 (sam-wol)
- April: 4월 (sa-wol)
- May: 5월 (o-wol)
- June: 6월 (yu-wol)
- July: 7월 (chil-wol)
- August: 8월 (pal-wol)
- September: 9월 (gu-wol)
- October: 10월 (sip-wol)
- November: 11월 (sip-il-wol)
- December: 12월 (sip-i-wol)
3. Hours of the Day
To express the time of day in Korean, you need to know Korean numbers. Here are the hours:
- One hour: 한 시 (han si)
- Two o'clock: 두 시 (du si)
- Three hours: 세 시 (if yes)
- Four hours: 네 시 (ne si)
- Five o'clock: 다섯 시 (da-seot si)
- Six o'clock: 여섯 시 (yeo-seot si)
- Seven o'clock: 일곱 시 (il-gop si)
- Eight o'clock: 여덟 시 (yeo-deol si)
- Nine o'clock: 아홉 시 (a-hop si)
- Ten o'clock: 열 시 (yeol si)
- Eleven o'clock: 열한 시 (yeol-han si)
- Twelve o'clock: 열두 시 (yeol-du si)
4. Minutes
To express minutes in Korean, you also need to know Korean numbers. Here are the minutes:
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- One minute: 일분 (il-bun)
- Two minutes: 이분 (i-bun)
- Three minutes: 삼분 (sam-bun)
- Four minutes: 사분 (sa-bun)
- Five minutes: 오분 (o-bun)
- Six minutes: 육분 (yuk-bun)
- Seven minutes: 칠분 (chil-bun)
- Eight minutes: 팔분 (pal-bun)
- Nine minutes: 구분 (gu-bun)
- Ten minutes: 십분 (sip-bun)
5. Days of the Month
Days of the month in Korean are expressed using Korean numbers followed by 일 (il), which means 'day'. For example, the first day of the month would be 일일 (il-il) and the tenth day would be 십일 (sip-il).
6. Years
Years in Korean are expressed using Korean numbers followed by 년 (nyeon), which means 'year'. For example, the year 2000 would be 이천년 (i-cheon-nyeon) and the year 2021 would be 이천이십일년 (i-cheon-i-sip-il-nyeon).
7. Seasons of the Year
The seasons in Korean are:
- Spring: 봄 (good)
- Summer: 여름 (yeo-reum)
- Autumn: 가을 (ga-eul)
- Winter: 겨울 (gyeo-ul)
8. Parts of the Day
The parts of the day in Korean are:
- Morning: 아침 (a-chim)
- Afternoon: 오후 (o-hu)
- Night: 밤 (bam)
9. Common Temporal Expressions
Here are some common Korean tense expressions:
- Today: 오늘 (o-neul)
- Tomorrow: 내일 (nae-il)
- Yesterday: 어제 (eo-je)
- Now: 지금 (ji-geum)
- After: 나중에 (na-jung-e)
- Before: 전에 (jeon-e)
Understanding and correctly using Korean tense expressions is critical to effective communication in this language. Practice these expressions and try to use them in your daily conversations to improve your Korean language skills.
