Your first four vowels

Two blocks, one difference

Play both. Each of these is one syllable — one beat of sound.

Look at what they share: a circle. Now look at what differs: next to the circle there is a tall line in 아, and under it a flat line in 오. The circle makes no sound here. The line is what you hear.

Which side is the short stroke on?

Both have a tall line. The only difference is the short stroke: it points right in 아 and left in 어.

아 is an open “ah”. 어 is not an English sound: keep your mouth open as for “ah” but pull the sound back, somewhere near the vowel in “son”. Trust the audio more than any English spelling.

You will see 어 written “eo” in Roman letters. That is a spelling convention for one single vowel, not “e” followed by “o”.

Flat lines go underneath

Same idea, turned sideways. The short stroke points up in 오 and down in 우.

For 오, round your lips and say a short, pure “o” — don’t let it slide into “ow” the way English “go” does. For 우, push the lips further forward, like the vowel in “moon”.

So what is the circle?

The lines are the vowels: ㅏ, ㅓ, ㅗ, ㅜ. A vowel can never stand alone in Korean writing — every block has to start with a consonant.

When a syllable starts with a vowel sound, the circle ㅇ fills that first seat and stays silent. Tall vowels (ㅏ ㅓ) sit to its right. Flat vowels (ㅗ ㅜ) sit below it.