Korean Counters
명, 마리, 개, 잔 — how Koreans count things.
In Korean you rarely say “two coffees” — you say coffee, two, cup: 커피 두 잔. Every kind of thing has its own counter, and each counter goes with one of two number systems. Each page shows which, with examples and the mistake learners make most.
Word order: noun + number + counter — 사과 세 개 (apple, three, items).
All counters
- 명 native 한·두·세people
- 마리 native 한·두·세animals, fish, insects
- 개 native 한·두·세things in general
- 병 native 한·두·세bottles
- 잔 native 한·두·세cups and glasses
- 권 native 한·두·세books and volumes
- 장 native 한·두·세flat things: paper, tickets, photos
- 대 native 한·두·세vehicles and machines
- 벌 native 한·두·세sets or pieces of clothing
- 켤레 native 한·두·세pairs of shoes, socks, gloves
- 송이 native 한·두·세flowers, bunches of grapes
- 그루 native 한·두·세trees
- 채 native 한·두·세houses and buildings
- 층 Sino 일·이·삼floors of a building
- 살 native 한·두·세age in years
- 번 native 한·두·세times (how often) — or a number label
- 시 native 한·두·세o'clock
- 분 Sino 일·이·삼minutes
- 원 Sino 일·이·삼Korean won (money)
- 시간 native 한·두·세hours (duration)
Learn Korean, a little at a time
- Learn Hangul
- Korean Politeness Levels
- Korean Family Titles
- Korean Proverbs
- Korean Sound Words
- What Do I Call Them?
- Korean Slang
- Konglish Dictionary
- Korean Four-Character Idioms
- Hanja in Korean Names
- Korean Travel Phrases
- Korean Surnames
- Korean Etiquette
- Korean Numbers
- Korean Holidays Explained
- The 24 Solar Terms
- Korean Drinks
- Living in Korea: Key Terms
- Korean Seasons & Weather
- Types of Korean Restaurants