The 3rd Day: Memorizing Four Basic Vowels


Just as we know what sound a specific note represents by looking at the musical scale marked on sheet music, we need to memorize first Korean four basic vowels by the characteristics of their shapes.







The four sounds ㅏ, ㅓ, ㅗ, and ㅜ are primary in the basic vowels. Each sound is determined by the location of the dot.




① When the dot is to the right of the vertical line, the vowel is ‘ㅏ’ and is pronounced as [아(a)]. ‘ㅇ’ in ‘아’ is borrowed to form a CV syllable to create a sound.

② When the dot is to the left of the line, the vowel is ‘ㅓ’ and is pronounced as [어(eo)].

③ When the dot is above the horizontal line, the vowel is ‘ㅗ’ and is pronounced as [오(o)].

④ When the dot is below the line, the vowel is ‘ㅜ’ and is pronounced as [우(u)].

Most languages have the 아 [a], 오 [o], and 우 [u] sounds, but 어 [ɞ] may be unfamiliar. According to the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet), the closest sound to 어 is [ɞ]. To produce this sound, your mouth should be open-mid and the tip of your tongue should be located near the back. Please check the sound at the site below.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet)

On the other hand, the standard pronunciations of the four vowels are as follows:

Play

아, 아, 아

어, 어, 어

오, 오, 오

우, 우, 우




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