Which Korean words should I learn first?

The easiest words of grammar and everyday life: basic verbs, small structural words, polite phrases, numbers, family, food. This page gathers 100 of them.

What comes after these 100 words?

Carry on topic by topic: each list gives 100 words sorted into three levels. The KoKo app gathers +6,000 Korean words and brings each one back at the right moment.

Can I print this list or save it as a PDF?

Yes. The “Print the list” button at the top of the page opens your device’s print dialog: choose to save as PDF to keep the 100 words and their translation, with nothing else around them.

Your first 100 Korean words

New to Korean? Here are 100 easy words to start with: verbs, the small words of grammar and everyday vocabulary, translated into English.

These words come from the 26 grammar and everyday-life topics of KoKo. The app holds 2,397 words at this level.

Grammar 24 words

Korean	English
말하다	to say
읽다	to read
웃다	to laugh
죽이다	to kill
낮다	low
좋다	good
날것의	raw
단단하다	hard
거기에	there
여기에	here
잘못	badly
조금	little
-에	toPreposition, movement in the direction of a place
-에서	fromProvenance, origin
그리고	and
또는	or
거기에	thereAdverbial pronoun of place, replaces a complement
이	thisDemonstrative determiner, masculine before a consonant
얼마간의	somePartitive article, masculine singular
그것의	of it
들어오다	to come in
타다	to get on
반납하다	to give back
빠져나오다	to get out

Everyday life 76 words

Korean	English
아니요	no
네	yes
고마워요	thank you
안녕	hiInformal greeting
하나	one
열	ten
적은 수	few
여섯	six
끝	end
오월	May
여름	summer
팔월	August
뼈	boneHard part of the skeleton
목	neck
등	back
코	nose
멍	bruise
안정	rest
건강	health
바이러스	virus
친구	friend
아기	baby
아들	son
남편	husbandEveryday use
미치다	crazy
실망하다	disappointed
어색함	embarrassment
기쁨	joy
열쇠	key
침대	bed
벽	wall
바닥	floor
나사	screw
나무	wood
못	nail
접착제	glue
스타킹	stockings
옷깃	collar
세련되다	smart
가죽	leather
마늘	garlic
밀	wheat
물	water
주스	juice
유기농	organic
사발	bowl
배고픔	hunger
맛	flavour
봉투	bag
비싸다	expensive
비밀번호	PIN code
비용	cost
거리	street
기차역	train station
공원	park
지도	map
버스	bus
관광버스	coach
오토바이	motorbike
항구	harbour
항공편	flight
숙박 요금서	bill
명소	site
안내인	guide
고개	mountain pass
동쪽	east
호수	lake
부리	beak
수탉	rooster
둥지	nest
금	gold
아치	arch
철	iron
링크	link
페이지	page
통화	call

Mini quiz

5 words from this page, picked at random. Find their translation.

Frequently asked questions

Which Korean words should I learn first?: The easiest words of grammar and everyday life: basic verbs, small structural words, polite phrases, numbers, family, food. This page gathers 100 of them.
What comes after these 100 words?: Carry on topic by topic: each list gives 100 words sorted into three levels. The KoKo app gathers +6,000 Korean words and brings each one back at the right moment.
Can I print this list or save it as a PDF?: Yes. The “Print the list” button at the top of the page opens your device’s print dialog: choose to save as PDF to keep the 100 words and their translation, with nothing else around them.

How KoKo makes words stick

These lists come from KoKo, the app to learn Korean vocabulary on iPhone.