Numbers - Sino

TL;DR

📊 Sino-Korean numbers come from Chinese and are used for dates, money, phone numbers, addresses, and counting minutes/months

🔢 They follow a super logical pattern: 십 (10), 이십 (20), 삼십 (30), etc. — just stack them up!

💰 These are the "formal" numbers you'll see everywhere in adult life (bills, calendars, business cards)

What Are Sino-Korean Numbers? 🤔

Korean actually has two number systems! 🎭

Sino-Korean numbers are the ones borrowed from Chinese a long time ago. They're used for:

📅 Dates (months, years)

💵 Money and prices

📞 Phone numbers

🏠 Addresses

⏰ Minutes (not hours!)

📏 Measurements

Think of them as the "official" numbers for grown-up stuff! 📝

The Basic Numbers (0-10) 🎯

Here's your foundation! 🏗️

0 = 영 (zero/nothing) 🫥

1 = 일 ☝️

2 = 이 ✌️

3 = 삼 🤟

4 = 사 🍀

5 = 오 ✋

6 = 육 🎲

7 = 칠 🎰

8 = 팔 🎱

9 = 구 ⚾

10 = 십 🔟

Building Bigger Numbers 🏗️

This is where it gets fun! 🎉 The pattern is super logical:

Tens: Just add the number + 십

10 = 십

20 = 이십 (2 + 10)

30 = 삼십 (3 + 10)

40 = 사십

50 = 오십

60 = 육십

70 = 칠십

80 = 팔십

90 = 구십

Hundreds: Number + 백 (hundred) 💯

100 = 백

200 = 이백

300 = 삼백

400 = 사백

500 = 오백

900 = 구백

Thousands: Number + 천 (thousand) 🎊

1,000 = 천

2,000 = 이천

5,000 = 오천

9,000 = 구천

Ten thousands: Number + 만 (ten thousand) 💸

Korean groups by 10,000s, not 1,000s! 🤯

10,000 = 만

20,000 = 이만

50,000 = 오만

100,000 = 십만

Combining Everything 🧩

Just stack them like building blocks! 🧱

→ 25 = 이십오

→ 47 = 사십칠

→ 356 = 삼백오십육

→ 1,234 = 천이백삼십사

→ 5,678 = 오천육백칠십팔

See the pattern? 👀 You're literally just saying each digit with its place value!

Real-Life Examples 🌍

Money 💰

→ 2,000원 = 이천 원

→ 15,000원 = 만오천 원 (or 일만오천 원)

→ 350,000원 = 삼십오만 원

Phone Numbers 📱

→ 010-1234-5678 = 공일공의 일이삼사의 오육칠팔

(Note: 0 is often called 공 in phone numbers!) 📞

Dates 📆

→ 3월 = 삼월 (March)

→ 12월 = 십이월 (December)

→ 2024년 = 이천이십사 년

Time (Minutes) ⏰

→ 15분 = 십오 분 (15 minutes)

→ 30분 = 삼십 분 (30 minutes)

Exceptions ⚠️

June & October 🗓️

These two months have special pronunciation rules to make them easier to say! 😌

❌ 육월 → ✅ 유월 (June)

❌ 십월 → ✅ 시월 (October)

The Number 1 🥇

When saying prices or large numbers, you can drop 일 (1) before 천 or 만:

1,000원 = 천 원 (not 일천 원) ✨

10,000원 = 만 원 (not 일만 원) ✨

But you keep 일 in:

100 = 백 (can also say 일백, but 백 is more common)

Phone numbers = 일 (always say it!)

Years = 일 (usually included)

Quick Comparison Reminder 🔄

Remember, there's another number system (Native Korean) for different things! 🎭

Use Sino-Korean for: Money 💵, dates 📅, minutes ⏱️, addresses 🏠

Use Native Korean for: Age 🎂, hours 🕐, counting items 📦

Don't worry if this feels confusing now — you'll get the hang of it with practice! 💪✨

Try the following exercise.

Write the following numbers in Sino-Korean. 🔢

What is the number 10 in Sino-Korean?

Answer

십 (sip)

How do you say 100 using Sino-Korean numbers?

Answer

백 (baek)

Write the Sino-Korean number for 1,000.

Answer

천 (cheon)

What is 50 in Sino-Korean?

Answer

오십 (osip)

How do you write 25 using Sino-Korean numbers?

Answer

이십오 (isibo)

What is the Sino-Korean number for 300?

Answer

삼백 (sambaek)

Write 7,000 in Sino-Korean.

Answer

칠천 (chilcheon)

How do you say 99 using Sino-Korean numbers?

Answer

구십구 (gusipgu)

What is 500 in Sino-Korean?

Answer

오백 (obaek)

Write the number 2,800 using Sino-Korean.

Answer

이천팔백 (icheonpalbaek)

Vocabulary

일 (il) - 1

이 (i) - 2

삼 (sam) - 3

사 (sa) - 4

오 (o) - 5

육 (yuk) - 6

칠 (chil) - 7

팔 (pal) - 8

구 (gu) - 9

십 (sip) - 10

백 (baek) - 100

천 (cheon) - 1,000

Common mistakes

🚫 Don't confuse Sino-Korean numbers with Native Korean numbers - Sino-Korean is used for dates, money, addresses, and numbers above 99.

🚫 Remember that 6 is 육 (yuk), not 륙 (ryuk), when it appears at the beginning of a number.

⚠️ When combining numbers, don't add spaces - write 이십오 (25) as one continuous word, not 이십 오.

💡 Zero in Sino-Korean is 영 (yeong) or 공 (gong), not 일 (one) - this is a common beginner mistake.