Conquer Batchim and Master Korean Reading Part-2

Read Hangul like a native Korean 👩🏽‍🏫

Now that we are here, I hope you have learnt and mastered Hangul like a native Korean. Please don’t read ahead if you are yet to learn Hangul. Last time, we discussed Single Batchim, now we’ll learn about Double Batchim.

Just like Single Batchim, Double Batchim appears at the bottom, if you remember the definition of Batchim it states, that it is a support consonant or a final consonant that appears at the base, thus it is also referred to as a base consonant.

Twin Consonants:

There are five twin consonants but only two are used at the batchim position. When twin consonants such as ㄲ[kk] and ㅆ[ss] appear at the batchim position they are pronounced considering the next syllable. Depending on whether the next syllable begins with a vowel or a consonant the sound is changed.

Eg: 있다 [it-ta][to have] (the next syllable begins with a consonant thus it produces a stronger sound). 있어 [is-seo][to have] (the next syllable starts with a vowel, thus the ‘ss’ sound is carried ahead).

Double Final Consonants:

Double Batchim [겹받침][kyeob-bachim] or double final consonants refers to two consonants appearing together at the bottom of the syllable. There are not many words with double final consonants however, they are used quite often. In total, there are 11 consonants that appear as double batchim ㄳ, ㄺ, ㄵ, ㄶ, ㄼ, ㄽ, ㄾ, ㅀ, ㄻ, ㅄ and ㄿ.

Let’s walk through them.

Consonants That Is Pronounced First:

ㄳ[k], ㄵ[n], ㄼ[r], ㄽ[r], ㄾ[r], and ㅄ[b] are pronounced with the first consonant sound. The first batchim is pronounced with the syllable that it belongs to. When the next syllable is a consonant the sound of the second batchim gets stronger. And, with a vowel, the sound of the second batchim travels to that vowel.

ㄵ and ㄶ have the ‘N’ sound eg: 앉다[anta][to sit], 많다[manta][many] with vowels these words become 앉아[anja] and 많이[mani] and they are pronounced as 안자 and 만이, respectively.*remember ㅎ sound is ignored*.

ㄼ and ㅀ have ‘L’ sound eg: 여덟[yeodeol][eight], 짧다[salda][to live], 넓다[neolda], 얇다[yeolda], 싫다[silda], 뚫다[dulda], 잃다[ilda].

ㅄ carries the ‘P’ sound eg: 없다[opta][do not have].

Consonants That Is Pronounced Second:

ㄺ, ㄻ, ㄿ are pronounced with the second batchim first. Generally, the second batchim is pronounced with the next syllable. When the next syllable is a consonant the batchim sound becomes stronger with the combination of both the batchim and the consonant.

ㄺ has a ‘K’ sound. eg:읽다[iktta][to read], 닭고기[dakkgogi][chicken], 늙다[nukta][to be old], 낡다[nakta][old-fashioned].

ㄻ has an ‘M’ sound. eg: 닮다[damda][follow], 젊다[joemda][young].

ㄿ has a ‘P’ sound. eg: 읊다[eubta][exception].

Consonants With ‘ㅎ’:

The ‘ㅎ’ sound is almost always ignored while pronouncing. eg: 괜찮아[Gwenchana][It’s alright], 싫어 [Sileo][Dislike].

How To Pronounce Double Batchim:

Depending on the next syllable the pronunciation is carried. When the next syllable is a consonant the pronunciation of the batchim is rather strong. On the other hand, when the following syllable is a vowel the sound of the second batchim is combined with it.

The Impact Of Sound Change:

The sound change impacting the pronouncing is essential as it can be very confusing among different words. eg: 안다[anta][to know] and 앉다[andta][to sit] both are pronounced ‘anta’ but the latter has a stronger sound.

Exceptions:

맑다(clear)(malta) and 묽다(watery)(multa)
Here, are the examples where ‘ㄹ’ is always pronounced first.
‘ㄱ’ only makes a sound when there is a vowel as the next syllable.

밟다 (to step on)(babta)
It is always pronounced with the ‘ㅂ’ sound first before a consonant.

Quick Notes:

Double batchim consists of two consonants appearing at the base.

Only ㄲ and ㅆ appear at the batchim position among other twin consonants.

ㅎ is almost always ignored while pronouncing.

First batchim is pronounced ㄳ: k, ㄵ: n, ㅄ: b/p, and ㄼ, ㄽ, ㄾ: l. If the next syllable starts with a vowel, then the second 받침 is pronounced with the next syllable. If the next syllable begins with a consonant the sound gets stronger.

Second batchim is pronounced ㄺ: k as 받침, ㄻ: m at the 받침 position
and ㄿ: b as a 받침. If the next syllable starts with a vowel, then the second 받침 is pronounced with the next syllable. With the consonant, the sound of the second batchim becomes stronger.

Exception: Only 맑다, 묽다, and 밟다 are exceptions to the mentioned pronunciation rules.

I hope it was easy to learn all the Double Batchim Rules. If you’ve got any questions let us know.

Keep learning, 화이팅!!!

여러분 파이팅 이에요. 오늘 도 수고했어.