We learned how to introduce ourselves in Korean. Talk with your classmates about things you typically say when making a new friend in Korean and your native language.

Read the dialogue. How does 세영 ask Juan for his name and telephone number?

In this lesson, you will learn how to ask “what” questions and how to answer them. You will also learn how to say telephone numbers and dates in Korean.

If you already have an idea about the lesson, that’s great! If not, no worries! You will be learning it now!

A. Wh- question 뭐예요? what is…?

When you make questions in Korean, the question word is not always placed at the beginning of the sentence. Simply replace the word or phrase that you are asking about with the wh- word. The question and answer have the same word order.

가: 전화 번호가 뭐예요?

What’s (your) telephone number?

나: (제 전화번호는) 011에 8500에 4567이에요.

(My telephone number) is 011-8500-4567 (As for my telephone number It’s…)

There are two forms of “what” in Korean. One is 무엇, the full form, and the other is 뭐, the shortened form. 뭐 is used in conversational Korean, and 무엇 usually in written Korean.

Finally, do not forget that the verb has to come at the very end of the sentence, and that you must always have a verb in each sentence!

이름이 뭐예요? What’s your name? NOT 이름이 뭐?

B. –이/가 Subject particle

Grammatical subjects in Korean usually introduce some new information. They are marked with –이 when they end in a consonant (like 이메일) and with –가 when they end in a vowel (like 전화번호).

The subject particle 이/가 has other usages, but one function is to mark the subjects of Wh-questions, as they seek new information.

1111 가: 이름이 뭐예요?                    What’s (your) name?
1111 나: 제 이름은 후안이에요.        My name is Juan.
or    나’: 후안이에요.                         (It) is Juan.

C. –은/는 Topic particle

As with your name, when answering with your phone number, you can simply give the information without repeating the word phone number. Where you would say it in English, you don’t need any word in Korea. If you were to repeat the word, you would use the topic particle –은/는, because you are now talking about something as the topic of your discussion.

1111가: 전화번호가 뭐예요?                                       What is (your) telephone number?
1111나: 제 전화번호는 016-7223-4567이에요.       My phone number is 016-7223-4567.
or   나’: 016-7223-4567이에요.                                (It) is 016-7223-4567.

1. Reading Dates

Names of the months are easy in Korean. Simply say the month’s number before the suffix –월, which means ‘moon.’ For ease of pronunciation, the final consonant in the number word is not pronounced.

Saying the days of the month is just as easy. Just add the suffix –일, which means “day,” after the number. Sometimes you will see a space before 월 and 일 in written Korean, but it makes no difference in meaning.

July 4th          칠 월 사 일                    August 15th  팔 월 십오 일
111111111111   칠월 사일                                              팔월 십오일

2. 며칠 date and 언제 when

When you ask for a date, you can use 며칠 for a specific date. Some people also ask the month: 몇 월 며칠이에요?
11111A: 오늘(이) 며칠이에요?              What’s the date today?
11111B: 사월 오일이에요.                       It’s April 5th .

언제 (when) is also used to ask for a specific date.

11111A: 생일이 언제예요?                          When is your birthday?
11111B: 시월 십일이에요. 오늘이에요.     It is October 10th . It’s today!
11111A: 와, 생일 축하합니다!                     Wow, Happy Birthday! (Lit., Congratulations on your birthday!

1. –도 also

–도 is a noun particle that means too or also. In English, also can occur in several places in the sentence. In Korean, however, –도 must be attached to the new or added noun, which is italicized in the following examples:

저는 1학년이에요. 다미도 1학년이에요.
I am a freshman. Dami is a freshman, too. (Dami, too, is a freshman.)

제 생일은 10월이에요. 친구의 생일도 10월이에요.
My birthday is in October. My friend’s birthday is also in October.

2. –의 Possessive particle

As you already know, the first noun expresses possession of the second noun when two nouns are put together:

111111선생님 전화      teacher’s phone

There is a more obvious way to express possession in Korean, using the possessive particle –의:

111111선생님의 전화   teacher’s phone

누구, which means “who” or “whom,” can be used to ask “whose” questions.

11111가: 누구(의) 우산이에요?   Whose umbrella is it?
11111나: 선생님(의)우산이에요. It’s a teacher’s umbrella.

The possessive form of the humble first person 제 my is often used to answer 누구 + NOUN questions. Note that 제comes from humble I 저 + 의, and the plain form 내 comes from plain I 나 + 의.

plain first person possessive 나 + 의 -> 내
나의 전화번호는 123-9876이에요. My phone number is 123-9876. (written)
내 전화번호는 123-9876이에요.     My phone number is 123-9876. (spoken)

humble first person possessive 저 + 의 -> 제
저의 친구는 미국 사람이에요.  My friend is American. (written)
제 친구는 미국 사람이에요.      My friend is American. (spoken)

Juan and Jiwoo are language partners who are meeting for the first time today. Listen to their conversation and answer the following questions in Korean.

1) What is Jiwoo’s telephone number?
2) When is Jiwoo’s birthday?
3) What is Juan’s telephone number?
4) What did Jiwoo say at the end of the conversation and why?

Wei just posted a message on the “Language Partner” website. Find out what her message is about.

안녕하세요? 제 이름은 웨이 첸이에요. 중국 사람이에요. 학생이에요. 랭귀지 파트너를 찾고 있어요. 한국어 할 수 있어요? 전화 주세요! 제 전화번호는 123-3450이에요.

Which of the following statements are true?
1) Wei is Chinese.              True False
2) Wei is a student.             True False
3) Wei wants to find a language partner who speaks English.     True False
4) He posted his email address.       True False

연습. SNS 친구 모으기. Collecting friends for your social network.

You are a “friend” collector. Get as many of your classmates’ birthdays, phone numbers, emails, and SNS IDs as you can. If you need help, listen to the TASK 1 dialogue again and use it as a guide.

Korean Nouns: Plurality

Nouns in Korean are not marked for plurality like in English (e.g. book vs. books).
1111한국어 책이 있어요. I have a Korean book/some Korean books.

To clarify and emphasize that more than one is being talked about, the suffix -들 can be added to the noun, but generally only with animate nouns like “people” or “friends”:
1111한국 친구들이 많아요. I have many Korean friends.

Numbers in Korea

Three vs. Four

What numbers do Koreans like? According to a recent survey, Koreans love the number 3, which is believed to bring good fortune. Korean youths even frequently play rock-paper-scissors three times in a row (삼세판). Four, on the other hand, is the number Koreans most dislike, as it is pronounced the same as the Chinese word for dying, 사 (死). In some buildings, the 4 th-floor button in elevators is replaced with “F” (four), and you won’t ever see 4444 in license plates or business telephone numbers!

Korean businesses take advantage of certain number combinations that sound like words. The following are some popular phone numbers that Korean business owners pay extra fees to own. Can you guess what types of businesses the following numbers are used for?

2424 이사이사          (이사하다 = to move)
8282 팔이팔이          (빨리 = quickly)
1004 천사                   (천사 = angel)

Answer: moving company        delivery service           charity donation center

Year in School vs. Student Number

Korean college students often ask peers for their “학번” as in “학번이 뭐예요?” If a college student’s 학번 is 20 학번, they entered college in 2020. As many male students fulfill their two-year military service during college, 학번 is a more accurate indicator of one’s seniority than 학년 (year in school).