
150 Korean Nouns Every Beginner Should Know
Need to start filling up your Korean vocabulary bank?
This list contains 150 must-know nouns from the language that’ll serve as a great foundation for the rest of your studies.
While 150 might sound like a lot, you’ll probably notice patterns between words that can make memorization easier.
Plus, there are plenty of words that are just Korean transliterations of English words!
Contents
- People
- Family
- Professions
- Transportation
- Places
- Media and Technology
- Food
- Body
- Emotions
- And One More Thing...
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
People
There are over 50 million people living in Korea today. A big population for a relatively small country, and all the more reason you should learn the nouns associated with people.
Knowing these nouns will get you by in a lot of social situations that require identification.
Korean English Romanization
남자
man nam-ja
여자
woman yuh-ja
소년
boy so-nyun
소녀
girl so-nyuh
친구
friend chin-gu
아기
baby ah-gi
어린이
child uh-ri-nii
십대
teen ship-dae
어른
adult uh-reun
아줌마
/ 아주머니
middle-aged woman ah-joom-ma / ah-joo-muh-ni
아저씨
middle-aged man ah-juh-ssi
노인
/ 어르신
elderly person no-iin / uh-reu-shin
대선배
/ 선배
senior dae-sun-bae / sun-bae
후배
junior hu-bae
고객
customer / client go-gaek
낯선 사람
stranger nat-sun sa-ram
관계
relationship gwan-geh
Family
Family is a big deal in Korean culture. The close bonds between family members are seen as hallmarks of societal success.
There are a lot of special names and titles for Korean family members, and I’ll be the first to admit that memorizing all of them can be difficult.
The titles can differ depending on which side of the family a person comes from, and whether or not they’re older or younger than you or someone else.
That said, knowing at least these nouns will definitely get you some brownie points with the fam!
Korean English Romanization
가족
family ga-jok
아이들
children ah-ii-deul
아들
son ah-deul
딸
daughter ddal
형제
brothers / siblings hyung-jeh
자매
sisters ja-meh
부모님
parents bu-mo
어머니
mother uh-muh-nii
아버지
father ah-buh-ji
남편
husband nam-pyun
아내
wife ah-nae
조부모님
grandparents jo-bu-mo
사촌
cousin sa-chon
손주
grandchild son-ju
Professions
These are helpful nouns to know if you’re interested in learning about (or joining) the Korean workforce.
Korea is a popular hub for international employees, so it’s definitely an option to consider if you’re looking to work abroad.
Korean English Romanization
직업
career jih-geop
일
work il
학생
student hak-seng
선생님
teacher sun-saeng-nim
의사
doctor ui-sa
간호사
nurse gahn-ho-sa
요리사
chef yo-rii-sa
변호사
lawyer byun-ho-sa
과학자
scientist gwa-hak-ja
경찰관
police officer gyung-chal-gwan
운동 선수
athlete oon-dong sun-soo
배우
actor bae-woo
예술가
artist yeh-sul-ga
미용사
beautician mi-yong-sa
기관사
engineer gi-gwan-sa
정비사
mechanic jung-bii-sa
판매원
salesperson pahn-mae-won
Transportation
Trains, buses, cars—oh my!
Cars may remain the most common mode of vehicle-based travel in Korea, but the expansive public transportation system is certainly a thing to behold.
In fact, if you ever travel to Korea, I highly recommend you just bask in the convenience, speed and cleanliness of the available public transport modes.
Korean English Romanization
자동차
car ja-dong-cha
버스
bus buh-seu
택시
taxi taek-shi
기차
train gi-cha
배
ship / boat bae
비행기
airplane bi-haeng-gi
자전거
bicycle ja-jeon-guh
오토바이
motorcycle oh-toh-ba-ii
역
train station yuhk
버스 정류장
bus stop buh-seu jung-nyu-jang
공항
airport gong-hahng
도로
road doh-ro
거리
street guh-rii
승객
passenger seung-gek
운전수
driver oon-jun-soo
티켓
ticket tee-ket
교통
traffic gyo-tong
Places
Sure, you can simply call most things on this list a “building,” but knowing just that noun won’t get you far in navigating a Korean town or city.
So make sure you know these nouns for common places you might come across!
Korean English Romanization
집
house jiip
도시
city doh-shi
시골
countryside shi-gol
학교
school hak-gyo
식당
restaurant shik-dang
사무실
office sa-mu-shil
가게
store ga-geh
시장
market shi-jang
쇼핑몰
shopping mall sho-piing-mol
병원
hospital byung-won
약국
pharmacy yak-gook
경찰서
police station gyung-chal-suh
은행
bank eun-haeng
미술관
art gallery mi-sul-gwan
공원
park gong-won
교회
church gyo-hwae
극장
theater geuk-jang
노래방
karaoke no-rae-bang
호텔
hotel ho-tel
카페
café ka-peh
Media and Technology
Whether it’s the newest K-pop music video or the next household cleaning robot, Korea is very big on trends in both media and technology.
And these trends are quick to get picked up. With a super-fast internet connection and high digital immersion among the population, it’s no wonder that communications can reach the masses so easily.
You can also use technology to help you study Korean! The language learning platform FluentU, for instance, helps you learn Korean vocabulary, grammar and cultural nuances in context.
FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.
You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Click here to check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.
And those are all good reasons to learn some of the vocabulary related to technology and media.
Korean English Romanization
전자 공학
electronics jeon-ja gong-hak
기술
technology gi-sul
텔레비전
TV tel-leh-bii-jeon
인터넷
internet een-tuh-net
컴퓨터
computer kum-pyoo-tuh
노트북
laptop no-teu-book
전화기
telephone jun-hwa-gi
스마트 폰
smartphone seu-ma-teu pon
메세지
message meh-seh-ji
카메라
camera ka-meh-ra
소식
news so-shiik
음악
music eu-mak
영화
movie yung-hwa
라디오
radio ra-dii-oh
광고
commercial gwang-go
Food
Korean cuisine is continuing to rise in popularity, what with its reputation for being healthy, unique and just plain delicious.
If you haven’t tried any Korean food yet, you’re missing out on some fantastic experiences your taste buds will cherish.
And whether you’re going to a Korean restaurant or the local Korean supermarket, you’re going to have to know some basic food vocab to get by.
Korean English Romanization
음식
meal eum-shiik
쌀
/ 밥
rice ssal / bahp
빵
bread bbang
물
water mul
쥬스
juice ju-seu
술
alcohol sul
김치
kimchi gim-chi
채소
/ 야채
vegetables chae-so / ya-chae
고기
meat go-gee
생선
fish saeng-sun
과일
fruits gwa-eel
반찬
side dish ban-chan
사탕
candy, sweets sa-tang
디저트
dessert dee-juh-teu
아침밥
breakfast ah-chiim-bahp
점심
lunch jum-shiim
저녁
dinner juh-nyuk
간식
snack gan-shiik
Body
It isn’t just a matter of pointing out your head, shoulders, knees and toes.
If you’re in Korea, knowing how to say the body parts is vital for many situations, primarily those that are medical in nature. You wouldn’t want the doctor looking into your ears when you have a broken arm!
Korean English Romanization
머리
head muh-rii
얼굴
face eol-gool
눈
eye nun
코
nose ko
입
mouth iip
귀
ear gwi
어깨
shoulder uh-kkae
가슴
chest ga-seum
등
back deung
위
stomach wii
팔
arm pahl
다리
leg da-rii
발
foot bahl
손
hand sohn
Emotions
In Korean and any other language, it’s crucial to know how to communicate your thoughts and feelings.
So you should definitely learn the words for some of those everyday sentiments you have.
Korean English Romanization
생각
thought saeng-gak
감정
emotion gam-jeong
사랑
love sa-rang
싫음
dislike, disgust shi-reum
배고픔
hunger bae-go-peum
기쁨
joy gi-bbeum
흥분
excitement, agitation heung-bun
재미
fun jae-mi
놀라움
surprise nol-ra-woom
슬픔
sadness seul-ppeum
걱정
worry geok-jeong
실망
disappointment shil-mang
두려움
fear du-ryuh-oom
This is a good first taste of the Korean language, and there’s so much more to look forward to.
Sure, it’s a pretty big list that’ll keep you busy, but you’ll get all these words down in time. Soon enough, you’ll be moving on to learn hundreds more and move into the thousands!
To get you motivated, here’s one more word that’s used wish people good luck: 화이팅 (hwa-ii-ting), which means “fight on!”
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
And One More Thing...
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