Now the two number systems from Part 4 earn their keep together. Telling the time in Korean uses both in a single phrase, and it is your best ever excuse to memorize the whole split: the hour is native Korean, the minutes are Sino-Korean. Once that clicks, the calendar falls into place with almost no extra work.
Telling time: 시 native, 분 Sino#
The formula is always 시 (hour, native) + 분 (minute, Sino):
1:10 → 한 시 십 분 3:15 → 세 시 십오 분 12:30 → 열두 시 삼십 분
Minutes up to 59 behave exactly like counting in Sino numbers. If you don't want to commit big minute numbers, the half-hour has its own word:
두 시 반 — 2:30 ("two o'clock half")
Hours cheat-sheet (native numbers + 시)#
| Clock | Korean |
|---|---|
| 1:00 | 한 시 |
| 2:00 | 두 시 |
| 3:00 | 세 시 |
| 4:00 | 네 시 |
| 5:00 | 다섯 시 |
| 10:00 | 열 시 |
| 12:00 | 열두 시 |
Remember 1–4 become 한/두/세/네 before 시, exactly as before counters. 몇 시예요? = "What time is it?"
Asking and pinning with 에#
The particle 에 attaches to times like glue — "at" for the clock, "on" for days, "in" for months:
세 시에 만나요 — meet at 3 월요일에 와요 — come on Monday 다음 주에 갈 거예요 — go next week
You already met this 에 in Part 2's particles as "to (place)"; time works the same way: one particle, two jobs.
The days of the week: seven names, one pattern#
Every day ends in 요일, and the day names are the Sino words you already learned in Part 4's company:
| Day | Korean | Meaning behind |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | 월요일 | moon + day |
| Tuesday | 화요일 | fire + day |
| Wednesday | 수요일 | water + day |
| Thursday | 목요일 | wood + day |
| Friday | 금요일 | gold + day |
| Saturday | 토요일 | earth + day |
| Sunday | 일요일 | sun + day |
The names come from the five elements (금목수화토) plus moon and sun — that's why they rhyme so neatly. 몇 월? for "which month," 며칠? for "which day."
Months and dates are pure Sino-Korean#
Months: Sino number + 월. Dates: Sino number + 일.
5월 (오월) 3일 (삼일) — May 3rd 1월 1일 = 새해 (New Year)
A full date read aloud is just a string of Sino numbers with 월 and 일:
2026년 8월 27일 — 이천이십육 년 팔 월 이십칠 일
The yesterday/today/tomorrow family#
These five words hold most day-to-day scheduling:
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 그저께 | the day before yesterday |
| 어제 | yesterday |
| 오늘 | today |
| 내일 | tomorrow |
| 모레 | the day after tomorrow |
오늘 몇 시예요? (What time is it today — i.e., now.) 내일 뭐 해요? (What will you do tomorrow?)
Note 내일 + 에 is rare; days stand alone or take 에 optionally.
Parts of the day#
Useful to slot events into a day:
| Time | Korean |
|---|---|
| morning | 오전 / 아침 |
| afternoon | 오후 |
| evening | 저녁 |
| night | 밤 |
오후 세 시에 만나요 — meet at 3 p.m. 저녁에 뭐 먹어요? — what are we eating in the evening?
Common mistakes#
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| 세 시 십 분 → swapped systems backwards | hour = native (세), minute = Sino (십) |
| "on Monday" = 월요일에 (skipping 에) | add 에: 월요일에 |
| 시 for a duration ("I waited two hours") | duration uses 시간: 2시간 |
| 4월 = 삼월's cousin → it's 사월 | 사 = 4 in Sino (사월), 넷 = 4 in native |
| "내일에" everywhere | tomorrow/today usually stand alone |
Practice set: schedule a real day#
- 지금 두 시예요. (It's 2 p.m. now.) — via the copula from Part 5
- 저는 매일 아침 커피를 마셔요. (I drink coffee every morning.)
- 금요일에 친구를 만나요. (I meet a friend on Friday.)
- 오후 다섯 시에 집에 가요. (I go home at 5 p.m.)
These all conjugate with the present polite endings and slot the special words and particles from this part. Time is the beating heart of daily Korean — once it flows, the natural next step is turning those phrases into live conversations: Part 7: survival Korean.
