TL;DR β 5 Words for This Lesson
- μ£Ό β week
- λ¬ / μ β month
- λ β year
- μμΌ β day of the week
- λ μ§ β date
Iru Helper Note
These 5 words are the building blocks of Korean's calendar system β and they come with one tricky twist: Korean has two number systems (native and Sino-Korean), and which one you use depends on the word! Once you've got this down, head to <mention-page url="Divisions: Hour, Minute, Second"> to learn the smaller units: hours, minutes, and seconds.
Example: μ€λμ λ¬΄μ¨ μμΌμ΄μμ? μ΄λ² μ£Ό κΈμμΌ λ μ§κ° λ©°μΉ μΈμ§ μμμ? λ€μ λ¬μ΄λ©΄ μν΄λκΉ μκ°μ΄ μ λ§ λΉ¨λΌμ. (What day is today? Do you know the date for this Friday? Next month is the new year, so time really flies.)
π― Big Picture
Korean calendar vocabulary mixes native Korean and Sino-Korean (Chinese-derived) words depending on context. μ£Ό (week) and λ
(year) are mostly used with Sino-Korean numbers (μΌμ£ΌμΌ, μΌ λ
), while λ¬ (month, native) is used for duration and μ (month, Sino-Korean) is used for calendar months (1μ, 2μ...). On top of that, μμΌ (day of the week) and λ μ§ (date) are two different concepts that beginners often confuse β μμΌ is "Monday/Tuesday," while λ μ§ is the actual calendar date like "June 15th."
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π Core Vocabulary Family
1. μ£Ό (week)
μ£Ό means "week." For duration, it's usually said as μΌμ£ΌμΌ ("one week").
- μΌμ£ΌμΌμ ν λ² μ΄λν΄μ. (I exercise once a week.)
- λ€μ μ£Όμ λ§λμ. (Let's meet next week.)
Grammar note: μ΄λ² μ£Ό (this week) / λ€μ μ£Ό (next week) / μ§λμ£Ό (last week) β note μ§λμ£Ό is written as one word.
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2. λ¬ / μ (month)
λ¬ is the native Korean word for "month," used for duration (ν λ¬ = "one month"). μ is the Sino-Korean word, used for calendar months with numbers (1μ = "January").
- ν λ¬μ ν λ² μνλ₯Ό λ΄μ. (I watch a movie once a month.)
- 12μμ νκ΅μ κ°μ. (I'm going to Korea in December.)
Grammar note: λ¬ takes native numbers (ν λ¬, λ λ¬); μ takes Sino-Korean numbers (1μ, 2μ... pronounced μΌμ, μ΄μ).
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3. λ (year)
λ
means "year" and is always paired with Sino-Korean numbers.
- μ¬ν΄λ 2026λ μ΄μμ. (This year is 2026.)
- μΌ λ μ ν λ² μ¬ν κ°μ. (I travel once a year.)
Grammar note: μΌ λ
(one year), μ΄ λ
(two years), μ λ
(ten years) β always Sino-Korean, never ν λ
.
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4. μμΌ (day of the week)
μμΌ means "day of the week" β attach it to μ/ν/μ/λͺ©/κΈ/ν /μΌ to get Monday through Sunday.
- μ€λ λ¬΄μ¨ μμΌμ΄μμ? (What day of the week is it today?)
- μμμΌμ μΌν΄μ. (I work on Monday.)
Grammar note: μμΌ itself just means "day of the week" as a concept β to name an actual day, attach it to a day name (μμμΌ, νμμΌ, etc.).
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5. λ μ§ (date)
λ μ§ means "date" β the specific day/month/year on a calendar.
- μ€λ λ μ§κ° λ©°μΉ μ΄μμ? (What's today's date?)
- μν λ μ§λ₯Ό νμΈνμΈμ. (Check the exam date.)
Grammar note: λ μ§ answers "which date" (λ©°μΉ ), while μμΌ answers "which day of the week" (λ¬΄μ¨ μμΌ) β two different questions!
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π£οΈ How They Work in a Sentence
- μ΄λ² μ£Ό κΈμμΌμ΄ λ¬΄μ¨ λ μ§μμ? (What date is this Friday?)
- μ λ ν λ¬μ λ λ², μΌ λ μ μ΄ λ² μ λ μ¬νμ κ°μ. (I travel about twice a month, ten times a year.)
- λ€μ μ£Ό νμμΌμ μν λ μ§κ° μμ΄μ. (There's an exam date next Tuesday.)
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𧱠General Formation Rule
- μ΄λ²/λ€μ/μ§λ + μ£Ό/λ¬/λ β "this/next/last week/month/year" (μ΄λ² μ£Ό, λ€μ λ¬, μ§λν΄)
- [duration]μ [frequency]λ² β "X times per [duration]" (ν λ¬μ λ λ² = "twice a month")
- [day] + μμΌ β μ/ν/μ/λͺ©/κΈ/ν /μΌ + μμΌ = MondayβSunday
- [year]λ [month]μ [day]μΌ β full date format, e.g. 2026λ 6μ 15μΌ
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Cross-check: Search "μμΌ" or "λ μ§" on korean.go.kr (νμ€κ΅μ΄λμ¬μ ) to see the full set of date-related vocabulary and usage examples.
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π Synonym Alert
- λ¬ vs μ β both mean "month," but λ¬ (native) is for duration (ν λ¬ = "a month's time"), while μ (Sino-Korean) is for naming a specific calendar month (3μ = "March").
- λ vs ν΄ β λ (Sino-Korean) pairs with numbers (μ΄ λ = "two years"); ν΄ (native) appears in words like μ¬ν΄ (this year) and λ§€ν΄ (every year), but doesn't take numbers directly the way λ does.
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β οΈ Pitfalls to Dodge
- λ¬ vs μ number systems β λ λ¬ (two months, duration, native numbers) vs 2μ (February, Sino-Korean numbers). Mixing these up is a very common mistake.
- μμΌ β λ μ§ β μμΌ is "Monday/Tuesday/etc."; λ μ§ is the calendar date "June 15th, 2026." Don't answer a λ μ§ question with a day name or vice versa.
- μ΄λ²/λ€μ/μ§λ β these three prefixes are essential: μ΄λ² μ£Ό (this week), λ€μ μ£Ό (next week), μ§λμ£Ό (last week, written as one word).
- λ always uses Sino-Korean numbers β say μΌ λ (one year), never ν λ .
- μ¬ν΄/λ΄λ /μλ β these are fixed words for "this year/next year/last year" β don't try to build them from μ΄λ²/λ€μ/μ§λ + λ (μ§λ λ sounds unnatural; μλ is correct).
μ΄μ λ¬λ ₯μ λͺ¨λ ννμ μμ λ‘κ² μΈ μ μμ΄μ! π
ποΈβ
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Try this exercise
Fill in each blank with the correct word from this lesson: μ£Ό, λ¬/μ, λ
, μμΌ, λ μ§.
- λ€μ μ λ§λμ. (See you next .)
- ν μ ν λ² μνλ₯Ό λ΄μ. (I watch a movie once a .)
- μ¬ν΄λ 2026___μ΄μμ. (This year is 2026.)
- μ€λ λ¬΄μ¨ μ΄μμ? (What is it today?)
- μν λ₯Ό νμΈνμΈμ. (Check the exam .)
- μ΄λ² κΈμμΌμ΄ μ μμΌμ΄μμ. (This , Friday is my birthday.)
- μ λ 12μ νκ΅μ κ°μ. (I'm going to Korea in December β 12.)
- μΌ μ ν λ² μ¬ν κ°μ. (I travel once a .)
- μμ μΌν΄μ. (I work on Monday β μ.)
- μ€λ κ° λ©°μΉ μ΄μμ? (What's today's ?)
Answer Key
- μ£Ό 2. λ¬ 3. λ 4. μμΌ 5. λ μ§ 6. μ£Ό 7. μ 8. λ 9. μμΌ 10. λ μ§
Vocabulary Box: μ£Ό (week) Β· λ¬/μ (month) Β· λ
(year) Β· μμΌ (day of week) Β· λ μ§ (date)
Pitfalls Recap: λ¬ (duration) vs μ (calendar month) β different number systems. μμΌ β λ μ§. λ
always with Sino-Korean numbers.
Want more reps? Head down to the Practice Hub below for 5 more exercises covering recall, sentences, and mixed review.
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Practice Hub: The Calendar
Five exercises building on the core vocabulary plus extra calendar terms for talking about dates and routines.
Exercise 1 β Word Recall: Korean β English πβ‘οΈπ€
A. μ€λ
Answer
today
B. λ΄μΌ
Answer
tomorrow
C. μ΄μ
Answer
yesterday
D. λͺ¨λ
Answer
day after tomorrow
E. κ·Έμ κ»
Answer
day before yesterday
F. μ£Όλ§
Answer
weekend
G. νμΌ
Answer
weekday
H. ν΄μΌ
Answer
holiday
I. μμΌ
Answer
birthday
J. κΈ°λ
μΌ
Answer
anniversary
Quick Reference
- κ·Έμ κ» β λͺ¨λ (2 days back β 2 days forward)
- μ£Όλ§ (weekend) β νμΌ (weekday)
- μμΌ/κΈ°λ μΌ are both "special date" words
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Exercise 2 β Word Recall: English β Korean π€β‘οΈπ
A. this week
Answer
μ΄λ² μ£Ό
B. last month
Answer
μ§λλ¬
C. next year
Answer
λ΄λ
D. this year
Answer
μ¬ν΄
E. last year
Answer
μλ
F. Monday
Answer
μμμΌ
G. weekend
Answer
μ£Όλ§
H. weekday
Answer
νμΌ
I. birthday
Answer
μμΌ
J. holiday
Answer
ν΄μΌ
Quick Reference
- μ¬ν΄/λ΄λ /μλ are fixed words β don't build them from μ΄λ²/λ€μ/μ§λ
- μ§λλ¬ is written as one word, like μ§λμ£Ό
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Exercise 3 β This/Next/Last Practice βοΈ
A. this week
Answer
μ΄λ² μ£Ό
B. next week
Answer
λ€μ μ£Ό
C. last week
Answer
μ§λμ£Ό
D. this month
Answer
μ΄λ² λ¬
E. next month
Answer
λ€μ λ¬
F. last month
Answer
μ§λλ¬
G. this year
Answer
μ¬ν΄
H. next year
Answer
λ΄λ
I. last year
Answer
μλ
J. every year
Answer
맀λ
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Exercise 4 β Sentence Translation: English β Korean π€β‘οΈπ
A. What day is today?
Answer
μ€λμ΄ λ¬΄μ¨ μμΌμ΄μμ?
B. My birthday is in March.
Answer
μ μμΌμ 3μμ΄μμ.
C. We have a holiday next Monday.
Answer
λ€μ μ£Ό μμμΌμ ν΄μΌμ΄μμ.
D. I work on weekdays and rest on weekends.
Answer
μ λ νμΌμλ μΌνκ³ μ£Όλ§μλ μ¬μ΄μ.
E. What's the date of the meeting?
Answer
νμ λ μ§κ° λ©°μΉ μ΄μμ?
F. I went to Busan the day before yesterday.
Answer
κ·Έμ κ» λΆμ°μ κ°μ΄μ.
G. See you the day after tomorrow!
Answer
λͺ¨λ λ΄μ!
H. Our anniversary is in May.
Answer
μ°λ¦¬ κΈ°λ
μΌμ 5μμ΄μμ.
I. I'll finish this project by next month.
Answer
λ€μ λ¬κΉμ§ μ΄ νλ‘μ νΈλ₯Ό λλΌκ²μ.
J. Time flies β it's already been a year!
Answer
μκ°μ΄ λΉ λ₯΄λ€μ, λ²μ¨ μΌ λ
μ΄ μ§λ¬μ΄μ!
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Exercise 5 β Mixed Review: Match the Definition ππ
A. 7 days
Answer
μ£Ό (week)
B. 12 months
Answer
λ
(year)
C. Monday, Tuesday, etc.
Answer
μμΌ (day of the week)
D. e.g. "2026λ
6μ 15μΌ"
Answer
λ μ§ (date)
E. Saturday & Sunday
Answer
μ£Όλ§ (weekend)
F. Native word for "month" (used for duration)
Answer
λ¬
G. Sino-Korean word for calendar month (1μ, 2μ...)
Answer
μ
H. Tomorrow
Answer
λ΄μΌ
I. Yesterday
Answer
μ΄μ
J. A day off work/school
Answer
ν΄μΌ (holiday)
μ΄μ μ΄λ€ λ μ§μ μμΌλ μμ λ‘κ² λ§ν μ μμ΄μ! π
ποΈβ
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