Final consonants (batchim)

Almost any consonant can be written at the bottom of a block, but only seven different sounds are ever heard there.

So far every block has been a consonant and a vowel. Many Korean syllables end in a consonant too, and that consonant is written underneath, at the bottom of the block. Koreans call it batchim, the support, because it sits under the rest like a base. The word for rice or a meal is a b letter, the vowel a and a p letter underneath: bap. The word for water is m, u and an l underneath: mul. The word for Korea, Hanguk, is two blocks that both end in a consonant. Reading batchim is mostly a matter of looking down after you read the vowel.

Seven sounds at the bottom

Here is the rule that surprises learners. Spelling allows many consonants in the final slot, but the standard pronunciation rules say only seven sounds can be heard there: k, n, t, l, m, p and ng. Every other final consonant falls into one of these. A final k with breath, or a doubled k, is still heard as k. A final s, j, ch or t with breath is heard as t. A final p with breath is heard as p. The words for sickle, daytime and face are spelled with three different final letters, s, j and ch, but all three are said the same way: nat, with a short stopped t.

Stopped, not released

The final k, t and p of Korean are not released. In English, the p at the end of stop often comes out with a small pop of air. In Korean the lips close for a final p and simply stay closed. The tongue does the same for k and t. Say the English word top, then say it again but freeze your lips the moment they touch. That frozen p is the Korean final. Learners who release these sounds tend to add an extra vowel and turn bap into something like bapeu, which a Korean listener hears as a different word.

When a vowel follows

A final consonant does not always stay at the bottom. When the next syllable begins with the silent round letter, that is, with a vowel sound, the final consonant moves across and is said as the start of the next syllable. The word for clothes plus the subject marker is spelled ot-i but said osi. The word for flower plus the object marker is spelled kkot-eul but said kkocheul, and here the hidden ch of the final letter comes back, because it is no longer in the final slot. This linking, called yeoneum, is the single most useful rule for understanding spoken Korean. The round letter ng is the one exception: it never moves.

A few blocks carry two final consonants, such as the word for chicken, the word for price and the number eight. Only one of the pair is heard before a consonant or at the end of a word. Chicken is said dak, price is said gap and eight is said yeodeol. When a vowel follows, the second consonant moves across and both are heard. These double finals are worth recognizing now and learning word by word later.