The Do’s and Don’t’s of Learning Korean
A guide to learning Korean as an adult beginner
I have been learning Korean for three years and I’m giving you the do’s and don’ts of learning this language based off of everything I’ve encountered along the way. All of these points below come from my own experience.
There are three keys to learning Korean: imitation, repetition, memorization
Imitate native speakers, repeat words and phrases, and memorize the What instead of trying to figure out the Why.
Learning a new language as an adult is difficult. We want to attack a new language with logic. Children don’t learn by logic, they learn by imitation, repetition, and memorization.
Many times I ask my tutor “Wait, but I thought X meant Y, but why does X mean Z in this sentence?”
Her response: “Just say, don’t think!”
Remember this, and you will pick up Korean quickly.
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Don’t learn Korean with Romanization
What is Romanization?
Romanization means converting a non-Roman writing system into the Roman writing system. English uses the Roman (or Latin) writing system. So does Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Romanian.
The Korean language uses the writing system Hangul (한글).
Brief introduction to Hangul
Hangul is a modern language created by King Sejong the Great in 1443. Compare that to Latin, created around 700 BC.
King Sejong’s goal was to create an alphabet that his people with little or no education could easily learn. Before Hangul, Koreans used the Chinese writing system, which was difficult to match to the Korean language.
This language is so cool because the shape of the letters represent the shape of your mouth when you pronounce them. Hangul is like a code, whereas with English, spelling doesn’t help you pronounce a word.
Climb??? Receipt??? The present tense of “read” is “read” and the past tense is “read”??? For any non-English speakers who can speak English as a second language, I applaud you.
Romanization will stunt your Korean learning growth
Romanization is a distraction.
Nine times out of ten you will see a Korean word with Romanization next to it in a Korean textbook. As you can see, I was determined to hide the Romanization… which only lasted a few pages until my Sharpie dried out.
Romanization sucks because not all sounds in the Korean language directly translate to English sounds. The classic example is ㄹ which is commonly described as sounding somewhere between an L and R.
Romanization just puts a letter to a Korean letter, but that doesn’t mean it’s pronounced that way. This kind of contradicts my point earlier that Hangul letters are code for how to pronounce something, but where the letter is in the word and what comes before and after that letter affects how it’s pronounced. Romanization doesn’t know that.
Example 좋아요 romanization is “johayo” but because of pronunciation rules, 좋아요 is actually pronounced joayo.
Do learn how to read Hangul immediately
Learn how to read and write this language before you learn anything else. It’s easy and fun to learn, I promise!
Here is the exact video that taught me.
Don’t learn Korean with Duolingo
Why not? Unless its gotten an upgrade since 2021, it doesn’t teach Korean correctly and relies heavily on Konglish - English words spelled in Hangul like “Starbucks”. The app is expensive and full of really annoying ads.
All you need is a good tutor, a translator app, and something to write with and on.
Do use free apps to memorize vocabulary
Why? Because it’s the cheapest and easiest way to memorize vocab! Papago’s app comes with some basic vocabulary sets for free. I also love using Quizlet. You can create your own flashcards or search Quizlet’s user library for a set already made.
I don’t recommend using apps for learning grammar and conversations.
Don’t learn Korean from a textbook
Why not? A textbook could explain how to pronounce the ㄹ all it wants but you will never be able to pronounce anything right without listen and repeat.
When I had my first lesson with my tutor (more on that later) she was impressed that I could read Hangul but said my sound was totally wrong. This goes for learning any language.
Do you know the English greeting phrase Koreans were taught in school?
”Hello, how are you?”
“I’m fine, thank you. And you?”
Unless you are a robot, no native English speaker ever says “I’m fine thank you, and you?”
Watch this funny video between KPop artists Eun-kwang of BTOB and Bang Chan of Stray Kids. Bang Chan is Australian. See how confused Eun-kwang gets by Bang Chan’s greeting.
Do learn Korean from textbooks that come with audio tracks
Why? A Korean language textbook is useless without audio tracks.
My favorite textbook resources come from Talk to Me in Korean (also known as TTMIK). If you’ve started learning Korean, I’m sure you’ve stumbled upon their e-books, website, or YouTube channel. Their books come with audio that you can stream or download from their website.
Right now I am reading Real-Life Korean Conversations for Beginners.
First I listen to the audio and try to understand just by listening. Then I read the conversation along with the audio, and then I go line by line, listening to the audio and repeating what was said aloud. I even like to record myself doing the audio and listen to it back when I’m driving.
This system uses my three keys of learning: imitation, repetition, memorization.
Don’t learn formal Korean grammar first
Why? It’s not the most commonly used way of speaking.
My first Korean language book taught in the high level form. I’ll never forget cross-learning the author’s book with his YouTube video for the lesson on “Want to” grammar. The words in the textbook (+고 싶습니다) weren’t the same as the words in the YouTube video (+고 싶어요).
I spent an hour trying to understand the disconnect until I realized that it was just a difference in formality. Not very helpful for the author to insist on teaching one way then teach on YouTube a different way but that’s all I’ll say on that…
When I finally started my tutoring sessions after four months learning on my own with this book, I discovered quickly that most conversations in Korean do not use formal grammar.
Do learn the “Yo” (요) form of Korean first
Why? This is the most common and used form.
Yes, formality is important in Korean culture but you’re a beginner and allowed to make mistakes. You aren’t expected to know when to use formal or informal when speaking to a Korean native.
As long as you don’t use the very casual way of speaking (how you’d speak to a close friend or someone younger than you), you won’t offend anyone.
Me (after spending too much time speaking casually with my Korean friends): 맛있어!
Angry Tutor: 맛있어요!
Don’t learn Korean with BTS or KPop songs
Why not? KPop lyrics don’t care about proper sentence structure. Half of the lyrics are usually in English, too. This combination results in strange sentence structure, sometimes just to make things rhyme.
Example: “Mafia in the Morning” by Itzy was one of the first KPop songs I listened to after I started learning Korean.
Ryujin starts the song off with:
Guess who loves you, 나야 나
Do I show you? No야 no
아직 time이 아냐 난
좀 더 가까이 좀 더 가까이 그러다 갑자기 싹
Korean verb endings (야) and particles (이) were tacked onto the English lyrics, which made me think that No in Korean was “No” (it’s actually 아니요) and Time in Korean was “time” (it’s actually 시간).
If you can’t read Hangul yet, my point is that I was wrong. No and Time are not Korean words. I felt like a fool!
Do listen to KPop songs while you learn
Why? Once you have a good foundation of the Korean language, you can pick up on words and phrases in songs as you listen.
I was so proud when I understood Twice’s B-side song title in Korean “알고 싶지 않아”. The English title is “REWIND” and if I was trying to learn Korean just from KPop, I would think “알고 싶지 않아” meant “rewind” but it doesn’t; it means “I don’t want to know”.
I also recommend you channel your inner-preschooler and listen to Korean children’s songs. They are horrrrrible ear-worms but repetition is one of the key ways to learn.
Kids’ songs on YouTube for Kids:
The Three Bears (this is my tutor’s favorite song to show beginners. I’m sorry in advance for getting this song stuck in your head.)
Don’t learn Korean with K-Dramas
Why not? Subtitles aren’t always correct.
I once met a girl who claimed she was fluent in Korean because she watched so many K-Dramas (Korean TV shows, mostly found on Netflix). I’m sorry but I’m not buying it.
In the K-Drama “Run On” (런온), the main character Oh Mi-Joo (오미주) is a film subtitle translator.
In one scene, she explains that the translation can’t just be word for word. It has to be short enough to fit on the screen so the viewer can watch the scene and quickly glance at the text to understand. This means it might not be perfectly translated, but has the essence of what is being said by the actors.
This was such an insightful scene for me, and a clear example of why you can’t rely on subtitles to teach you Korean. There are nuances to the Korean language and culture references that just can’t translate to English.
Think about it this way…
There’s a Korean idiom similar to “Birds of a feather flock together”. It’s “가재는 게 편이다” which translates to “The crayfish sides with the crab”.
If an actor said “가재는 게 편이다” on screen, the English translation would probably say “Birds of a feather flock together” because that’s what English speakers would understand. But imagine if you read that and then assumed that “가재는 게 편이다” literally meant “birds of a feather flock together”?
See what I mean? You can’t rely on subtitles to teach you Korean.
Do rewatch your favorite K-Dramas with Korean subtitles
Why? You won’t fully understand (or understand at all) what is going on in the K-Drama but that’s not the point. The point is to start matching words to native speech. You’ll start to see how words sound in natural conversations and when and how honorifics are used.
When you’ve been learning Korean for a little while, you’ll re-watch old favorites in a totally new way. Words that were just “noise” to you on the first watch will have meaning.
Trust me, it’s a confidence-building and fun exercise! (I’ve rewatched “Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-Joo” 5 times and counting.)
Disclaimer: This will only be beneficial if you can read Hangul (한글) and are reaching the beginner-intermediate stage in your learning or higher.
Don’t learn Korean from Korean YouTube
Why not? I already gave you the “Run On” subtitle spiel, that’s my first reason behind this Don’t.
My second is nuance, slang, dialects, inside jokes… the list goes on. The speaking level in Korean variety shows and KPop vlogs is just too native, too high level.
It’s the difference between “Hello, how are you?” and “Yo, whaddup bro?”
Do embrace Korean YouTube Editing
Why? Hardcoded Korean subtitles!
My first introduction to Korean YouTube was Blackpink House. I was overwhelmed by the sound effects, the subtitles, the random graphics, and the instant replays!
Now that I’m learning Korean, this way of editing is has been a God’s send. Nowhere else can I easily get English captions and Korean captions together.* It’s extremely helpful for learning new slang or phrases, especially if you can connect a scene or favorite KPop idol with it.
Example: I like to screenshot phrases and write them down later.
The phrases below are all from YouTube clips I’ve watched of the KPop group The Boyz.
*I think there’s an app that lets you watch Netflix with multi-language captions but I never tried it.
Don’t sign up for a Korean language class
Why not? You probably took Spanish classes from 2nd grade to 12th. And how good is your Spanish now?… Exactly.
The class will either go as fast as the best student or as fast as the worst student.
Everyone is learning at different paces. Something might not make sense to you, but the teacher has moved on because you were too slow to ask a question and everyone else in the class got it. Or you already know how to read Hangul but the rest of the class is still figuring it out.
The one pro I’ve found in taking a group language class is meeting people with a common interest, who you can go to Korean BBQ with.
You will not learn Korean.
Do get a private Korean tutor
Why? You need individual tutoring with a clear structure in place.
It can be online — my tutor is. But it has to be someone experienced in teaching the language, not just someone who speaks Korean. You need someone who can lead the lesson.
A quick Google search will help you find someone, though I recommend looking for someone living in your country instead of in Korea because they will understand your culture enough to make comparisons to Korean and be in a timezone closer to yours.
Don’t do Korean English language exchange
Why not? As I said above, you need structure and you need to learn from someone who has experience in teaching.
You can’t get that in language exchange.
What you get is an awkward face to face encounter where both of you don’t know what to say, and then it becomes a friendship where you default to English because your conversation topics are too complicated for Korean.
Every time I try to do language exchange with my Korean friends, I start explaining something in English that I want them to translate for me and then we get off-topic and chit-chat in English for an hour.
Having said all this, teaching English to a foreigner is very rewarding (and eye-opening to how nonsensical English really is). I recommend you try helping someone learn English one day!
Do meet Korean friends and read scripts with them
Why? Koreans can help your speech sound native.
Recently I asked my Korean friend to help me with Korean and I came prepared with my TTMIK book. My friend read each sentence with native intonation and I would copy her. If I had questions about grammar or words I didn’t know, she’d explain them to me along the way.
How to meet Koreans in your area
Well, you can be a psychopath like me and eavesdrop on conversations. I did that with the sushi chefs at my local grocery store and now I greet them in Korean every time I come in.
You can also try a language exchange app (but you cannot rely on this as a single source of learning!) to find people in your area or even use Bumble BFF.
I made an account and explained that I was interested in KPop and learning Korean. This is how I found two of my now very good friends, my Japanese friend who loves Korea as much as I do, and my Korean friend who introduced us to her extremely loving family and made our trip to Korea unforgettable!
Don’t let this list of do’s and dont’s overwhelm you.
Even if you just take one tool from my post, guess what? You’re learning Korean! Take a minute to realize how cool that is!!!
Please comment below if you have any questions or just want to vent to someone when it gets tough. I’ll be sure to write back asap :)