Language/Korean/Grammar/Plurals

Korean Grammar - Plurals

Hi Korean learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn about plurals in Korean. In English, we often add an "s" at the end of a noun to indicate that it is plural. However, this is not the case in Korean. Instead, there are several ways to indicate plurality, and we will go over them in this lesson.

Consider broadening your understanding by checking out these related lessons: Connectors, Korean Grammar → Conjunctions and Connectors → Conditional ..., Gender & Conjunctions.

Basic Plural Marker

In Korean, the basic marker for plural is "들" (deul). We add it after a noun to indicate it is in plural form. The pronunciation can vary, but generally, it is pronounced as "뜰" (tteul). Here are some examples:

Korean	Pronunciation	English
사과	sagwa	apple
사과들	sagwadeul	apples
사람	saram	person
사람들	saramdeul	people

Note that the plural marker does not change depending on the final consonant or the number of syllables in the noun. It is always "들".

Plural Markers for Sino-Korean Words

Sino-Korean words are words with Korean pronunciation, but Chinese characters. There are some specific plural markers commonly used for Sino-Korean words.

The plural marker for words that end in "자" (ja), "채" (chae), "카" (ka), "타" (ta), "파" (pa), "하" (ha), "마" (ma), "바" (ba), "사" (sa), "싸" (ssa), "자" (ja), "차" (cha), "카" (ka), "타" (ta), "파" (pa), "하" (ha), "마" (ma), "바" (ba), or "사" (sa) is "들" (deul), as in the previous section.

The plural marker for words that end in "은" (eun), "인" (in), or "일" (il) is "들" (deul) as well. Here are some examples:

Korean	Pronunciation	English
컴퓨터	keompyuteo	computer
컴퓨터들	keompyuteodeul	computers
학생	haksaeng	student
학생들	haksaengdeul	students
일자리	iljari	job/employment
일자리들	iljarideul	jobs/employments

Plural Forms Without Markers

Not all nouns require plural markers to indicate plurality in Korean. There are some nouns that inherently imply plurality, and therefore do not need the particle “들” (deul). Common examples include words like “컵” (keop, cup) or “자루” (jaru, bag).

Here's a dialogue to illustrate this concept:

• Person 1: 이 카페에 컵 더 필요해요. (I kape-e keop deo pil-lyo-hae-yo) (We need more cups in this café.)
• Person 2: 몇 개가 필요하세요? (myeot gae-ga pil-yo-ha-se-yo?) (How many do you need?)
• Person 1: 한 세트랑 컵 두 개요. (han seteulang keop du gae-yo) (I need one set and two cups.)

As you can see, in the dialogue, the word “컵” (keop, cup) does not take any plural markers but still indicates plurality through the context.

Irregular Plural Forms

There are some words in Korean that have irregular plural forms. Typically, these words come from classical Chinese or have a religious connotation.

For example, the word “사람” (saram, person) has the irregular plural form “사람들” (saramdeul, people). Similarly, “하늘” (haneul, sky) takes the form “하늘들” (haneuldeul, skies) instead of the expected “하늘들”.

Counting Objects With Native Korean Numbers

Often, when counting objects, native Korean numbers are used, and they have specific forms when counting. Here are some examples:

Counting Units	Sino-Korean Numbers	Native Korean Numbers
개	1, 2, 3, 4	하나, 둘, 셋, 넷
명	1, 2, 3, 4	한 명, 두 명, 세 명, 네 명
장	1, 2, 3, 4	한 장, 두 장, 세 장, 네 장

Note that for native Korean numbers, the particle “명” (myeong) is used when counting people.

Summary

In summary, plural forms in Korean are indicated with the particle “들” (deul), although not all nouns require it. Sino-Korean words and some nouns with religious connotations have specific plural markers, and native Korean numbers also have specific counting forms.

For more information on Korean Grammar, please visit the Korean Polyglot Club page and ask any questions!

Sources

• Korean Language Course Plurals (Speak Like Natives) - Korean Jun
• Korean Plural Marker -들 [deul. This posting is from the blog ...]
• Korean Translation Tip: Korean Has a Plural Form; It Just Doesn't ...

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Other Lessons

• Nouns
• Give your Opinion
• Future Tense
• Negation
• How to Use Be
• Conditional Mood
• How to Use Have
• Adjectives
• Gender