Level 1 · Unit 2 · Numbers & Time · 8 min

Time & Dates

Tell the time using native hours and sino-Korean minutes, ask what time it is, and talk about today, tomorrow, and yesterday.

The cruel twist: hours are native, minutes are sino-Korean

Korean time uses both number systems in a single phrase, and this is the one combination every learner has to memorize by brute force. Hours use native numbers with their modifier forms — 한 시, 두 시, 세 시, 네 시, 다섯 시 (1-5 o'clock) — the same 하나→한 shift from the counting lesson. Minutes switch straight to sino-Korean — 일 분, 오 분, 십오 분, 삼십 분 — with no modifier changes at all. There's no shortcut here; the pairing just has to become automatic.

세 시 se si three o'clock

시 means 'o'clock' and always pairs with a native number in its modifier form — 세 here, not 셋 and definitely not 삼 (the sino-Korean 'three').

십오 분 sibo bun fifteen minutes

분 means 'minutes,' and it pairs with sino-Korean numbers — 십오 (fifteen) here, never 열다섯 (the native 'fifteen'). This is the opposite number system from the hour you just saw.

세 시 십오 분 se si sibo bun 3:15

Put hour and minute together and you get the full twist in one phrase: native 세 시 + sino 십오 분. Say it slowly a few times until the switch between the two systems feels natural.

몇 시예요? — asking the time

몇 시예요? asks 'what time is it?' — the same 몇 pattern from the counting lesson, now paired with 시 instead of 개/명/살. Add 지금 ('now') in front for extra clarity: 지금 몇 시예요? Answer the same way you'd answer any other 몇 question — swap 몇 for the actual hour.

지금 몇 시예요? jigeum myeot siyeyo? What time is it now?

지금 (now) isn't required, but it's common — it makes clear you're asking about the current time, not a scheduled one.

지금 세 시예요 jigeum se siyeyo It's three o'clock now.

The plain answer to 몇 시예요?, with 시 taking 예요 (not 이에요) since 시 ends in a vowel. If minutes matter too, just tack on the sino-Korean minute before 예요, as in 세 시 십오 분이에요.

오늘/내일/어제, and weekday names

Three essential day words: 오늘 (today), 내일 (tomorrow), and 어제 (yesterday). Weekday names all end in 요일 and follow a short list of one-syllable roots — 월요일 (Monday), 화요일 (Tuesday), 수요일 (Wednesday), 목요일 (Thursday), 금요일 (Friday), 토요일 (Saturday), 일요일 (Sunday). You don't need to memorize all seven right now — just recognize the 요일 ending as 'day of the week' when you hear it.

오늘 oneul today

오늘 shows up constantly, from checking the weather to making plans — 오늘 몇 시예요? isn't grammatical on its own, but 오늘 바빠요? ('are you busy today?') is a phrase you'll hear a lot.

내일 naeil tomorrow

내일 is the word you'll reach for when setting up plans or appointments — you'll use it in the dialogue below to confirm a meeting time.

Confirming a meeting time before hanging up the phone

지금 몇 시예요?

jigeum myeot siyeyo? — What time is it now?

지금 세 시 삼십 분이에요.

jigeum se si samsip bunieyo. — It's 3:30 now.

네, 감사합니다. 내일 봐요!

ne, gamsahamnida. naeil bwayo! — Okay, thank you. See you tomorrow!

네, 안녕히 가세요.

ne, annyeonghi gaseyo. — Yes, goodbye.

Say it out loud