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Level 0 · Unit 1 · Vowels · 5 min

Basic Vowels 2: ㅡ ㅣ ㅐ ㅔ

Read and pronounce the four vowels ㅡ, ㅣ, ㅐ, ㅔ and recognize them in real words.

Four more vowels, same three building blocks

These four vowels still use only dots and lines, just arranged differently. Remember: ㅇ by itself is silent — it just fills the consonant slot so a vowel can stand alone as a syllable, like 이 or 애. Watch for ㅐ and ㅔ especially closely.

ㅡ
으 eu

A flat horizontal line — spread your lips wide and flat, like a stretched smile, for a sound between 'oo' and 'uh'.

ㅣ
이 i

A single vertical line — sounds just like 'ee' in see.

이 i this (pointing at something nearby)
ㅐ
애 ae

Built from ㅏ + ㅣ — open your mouth like 'a' in father but end closer to 'ee', giving 'e' as in bed.

애 ae kid (casual word for child)
ㅔ
에 e

Built from ㅓ + ㅣ — also lands on 'e' as in bed, just approached from a different starting shape.

에 e at / in (location marker)

ㅐ and ㅔ sound almost the same today

Historically ㅐ and ㅔ were distinct vowels, but in modern Korean most speakers pronounce them nearly identically — both land close to 'e' in bed. Spelling still keeps them separate, so you need to memorize which letter a word uses even though your ear often can't tell them apart.

Say it out loud

오이 oi cucumber

Listen, then repeat aloud. Matching the rhythm matters more than perfection.

Check yourself