Learn how to you say the vowels ㅗ (o) and ㅜ (u) correctly
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| Hi everybody! Jae here. Welcome to Ask a Teacher, where I’ll answer some of your most common Korean questions. |
| The question for this lesson is… |
| How do you say the vowels ㅗ (o) and ㅜ (u) correctly? |
| These two vowels sound similar, so they can be a little tricky to pronounce. The vowel ㅗ (o) sounds like a very round “o,” like in the words “oval” and “orange.” The vowel ㅜ (u) sounds more like the “oo” sound in the words “moon” and “room.” |
| Let’s break it down with some examples so you can hear the difference between ㅗ (o) and ㅜ (u) more clearly. |
| Let’s take the word 공[gong], which means “ball” in Korean. 공[gong] has the vowel ㅗ (o), which makes a round “o” sound. |
| Now let’s take another word 궁[gung], which usually means “palace.” This word has the ㅜ (u) vowel, which means it's going to have more of an “oo” sound. |
| A good way to practice these vowels is by alternating between them while repeating, like this: 공[gong] 궁[gung] 공[gong] 궁[gung]. Can you hear the difference? |
| Let’s do one more example. The word 오후[ohu], meaning “afternoon,” has both the ㅗ (o) and ㅜ (u) vowels. Once you have mastered saying 공[gong] and 궁[gung], try repeating the word 오후 [ohu] and see how you sound! |
| How was this lesson? Pretty interesting, right? |
| Do you have any more questions? Leave them in the comments below and I’ll try to answer them! |
| See you next time. 다음 시간에 만나요. (Daeum-sigane mannayo.) |
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