Pronunciation foundations · 1 of 4
Final consonant sounds
Recognize how several written final consonants share one unreleased ending sound.
Korean has seven basic final-consonant sounds: ㄱ, ㄴ, ㄷ, ㄹ, ㅁ, ㅂ, and ㅇ. At word end or before a consonant, written ㄲ and ㅋ reduce to ㄱ; ㅅ, ㅆ, ㅈ, ㅊ, and ㅌ reduce to ㄷ; and ㅍ reduces to ㅂ. The representative finals ㄱ, ㄷ, and ㅂ remain in their own sound groups under this rule.
The stop endings ㄱ, ㄷ, and ㅂ are unreleased: make the closure without a separate burst of air. Use the back of the tongue for ㄱ, the tongue tip behind the upper teeth for ㄷ, and both lips for ㅂ. There is no added vowel after the closure. These final stops are not exact English equivalents, even when English k, t, or p helps you remember the closure.
Start with words spoken on their own: 옷 ends with the ㄷ sound, giving 옫; 꽃 also ends with ㄷ, giving 꼳; 앞 ends with ㅂ, giving 압. The spelling stays unchanged. Word end and the position before a consonant are the contexts for this neutralization rule, not a vowel-initial grammatical attachment, where linking can preserve the final letter's own sound.
Spelling and sound
Square brackets show a Hangul pronunciation guide, not a new spelling or IPA. These guides omit vowel length and fine phonetic detail. Audio reads the original spelling as a whole word or inflected form, never the bracketed guide.
- Written
- 옷
- Pronounced
- [옫]
clothes
At word end, final ㅅ is realized as unreleased ㄷ, so 옷 is read 옫 without an added vowel.
- Written
- 꽃
- Pronounced
- [꼳]
flower
At word end, final ㅊ reduces to unreleased ㄷ, giving 꼳; the initial ㄲ is unchanged.
- Written
- 앞
- Pronounced
- [압]
front
At word end, final ㅍ reduces to unreleased ㅂ, giving 압 with closed lips rather than a puff of air.
National Institute of Korean Language (NIKL) — Standard Pronunciation — Chapter 4, clauses 8–9. These English explanations are learning summaries, not an official translation.
Listen in context
Hear whole syllables or words, not isolated letter names.
- 옷
clothes
- 꽃
flower
- 앞
front
Audio stopped.