Diphthongs in the Korean Alphabet

In the Korean Alphabet (Hangul), there are several vowels that are created by combining two basic vowels. These are called diphthongs, and they often confuse learners — especially pairs like ㅐ vs ㅔ. But don’t worry! Today, we’ll look at six essential diphthongs and break them down with pronunciation and example words.

📚 6 Korean Diphthongs You Should Know

Diphthong	Components	Pronunciation	Example Word
ㅐ	ㅏ + ㅣ	ae (like “애”)	개 (gae – dog)
ㅔ	ㅓ + ㅣ	e (like “에”)	세 (se – three)
ㅒ	ㅑ + ㅣ	yae (“얘”)	얘기 (yaegi – talk)
ㅖ	ㅕ + ㅣ	ye (“예”)	예 (ye – yes, example)
ㅘ	ㅗ + ㅏ	wa	와 (wa – wow, come)
ㅙ	ㅗ + ㅐ	wae	왜 (wae – why)

🗣 Pronunciation Tips

• ㅐ and ㅔ are often pronounced almost the same in modern Korean. But they are used in different words, so it’s important to memorize spelling.

• ㅒ and ㅖ are the “y” versions — just say ㅐ or ㅔ with a “y” sound before.

• ㅘ and ㅙ start with a round “w” sound (like in “wow” or “wedding”) and then go into an ㅏ or ㅐ sound.

🧩 Visual Structure

Let’s break each diphthong into its parts:

• ㅐ = ㅏ + ㅣ

• ㅔ = ㅓ + ㅣ

• ㅒ = ㅑ + ㅣ

• ㅖ = ㅕ + ㅣ

• ㅘ = ㅗ + ㅏ

• ㅙ = ㅗ + ㅐ

Diphthong	Components	Pronunciation	Example Word	Meaning (English)
ㅐ	ㅏ + ㅣ	ae (like “애”)	개 (gae – dog)	"Gae" means dog or puppy.
ㅔ	ㅓ + ㅣ	e (like “에”)	셋 (set – three)	"Set" means the number three (3).
ㅒ	ㅑ + ㅣ	yae (“얘”)	얘기 (yaegi – to talk)	"Yaegi" is a shortened form of "iyagi", meaning talk.
ㅖ	ㅕ + ㅣ	ye (“예”)	예 (ye – yes, example)	"Ye" can mean yes (polite) or refer to art ("yesul").
ㅘ	ㅗ + ㅏ	wa	와 (wa – wow, come)	"Wa" is an exclamation (wow!) or command ("come").
ㅙ	ㅗ + ㅐ	wae	왜 (wae – why)	"Wae" is used when asking a question: why?

✏️Download our free Hangul diphthong writing practice sheet!

Practice Korean Alphabet vowels like ㅐ, ㅔ, ㅒ, ㅖ, ㅘ, and ㅙ with easy stroke guides — perfect for beginners.

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