Sino Korean Numbers 1-100: Full List, Rules and Audio

What you'll learn

• Say and write the ten base digits, 일 (1) to 십 (10).
• Build any number from 11 to 99 with the tens-plus-units formula.
• Read the full list from 1 to 100 aloud, including the sound changes in 십일, 십이, 십오 and 십육.
• Avoid the three mistakes that mark a beginner: 일십, native 열 in tens, and 일백.
• Prerequisites: you can read Hangul. Estimated time: 30 minutes.

Sino Korean Numbers 1-100: the Essentials

Sino-Korean numbers (한자어 수사, hanja-eo susa) are the Korean number words borrowed from Chinese characters. Koreans use them for minutes, dates, money, floors, phone numbers and labels. They are called Sino because they come from the same characters as Chinese numbers, such as 三 (삼, three).

Everything on this page grows from eleven words, shown with audio below.

The reading aid column uses the Revised Romanization of Korean, the official system of the National Institute of Korean Language (국립국어원). It only helps you sound out the Hangul. Always trust the Hangul and the audio first.

Expert insight: most Sino-Korean digits are a single short syllable, so 일 and 이, or 삼 and 사, are easy to mishear on the phone or in a noisy shop. That is why long digit strings are read slowly and in groups. Keep the two number systems apart as well: if you need a reminder of which system applies where, the lesson on Sino vs native Korean numbers has the rule.

With ten digits in hand, you can already build every number to 99.

How Do You Build 11 to 99?

You build 11 to 99 by putting the tens first and the units after. Sino-Korean numbers work like place value in arithmetic: the tens word says how many tens, and the units word says how many ones. No extra word joins them.

There are three formulas.

Follow these steps to read any number from 11 to 99.

1. Split the number into tens and units: 47 is 4 tens and 7 ones.
2. Say the tens: 4 tens is 사십 (digit 사 + 십).
3. Add the units: 7 is 칠.
4. Join them with no gap in Hangul: 사십칠.

You'll know it worked when you can say 82 as 팔십이 without looking: 팔 (8) + 십 (10) + 이 (2).

The dropped 일 rule. Korean does not say "one ten" or "one hundred" with 일. The number 10 is 십, never 일십. The number 11 is 십일, never 일십일. The number 100 is 백, never 일백, in everyday speech. The digit 일 appears only as the last digit, as in 이십일 (21).

The build rule is simple, but the full list shows how it plays out, and a few numbers sound different from how they are written.

What Are the Full Numbers 1-100?

The full list from 1 to 100 appears below in blocks of ten, each with Hangul, a reading aid and a note on sound. The "Sound" column shows how the number is pronounced when it differs from the spelling. A dash means you pronounce it as written. Each block has one audio clip that reads the whole row.

1 to 10

11 to 20

21 to 30

31 to 40

41 to 50

51 to 60

61 to 70

71 to 80

81 to 90

91 to 100

The pattern repeats every ten numbers. Once you have read 11 to 20 and 21 to 30, the other eight blocks are the same pattern with a new tens word: 삼십, 사십, 오십, 육십, 칠십, 팔십, 구십.

The tens words are worth learning as a set.

If you look at the Sound column, only some rows differ from the spelling, and the next section explains why.

Why Do Some Numbers Sound Different from the Spelling?

Some Sino-Korean numbers sound different from their spelling because Korean applies sound rules between syllables. Three rules matter for numbers 1 to 100. The standard pronunciation rules (표준 발음법) of the National Institute of Korean Language describe all of them.

Rule 1: liaison (연음). A final consonant moves to the next syllable when that syllable starts with the silent consonant ㅇ. The ㅂ of 십 moves to the next syllable in 십일, 십이 and 십오:

Rule 2: ㄴ-insertion and nasalisation. In 십육 (16), the syllable 육 after a final consonant gets an extra ㄴ sound ([십뉵]), and ㅂ before ㄴ turns into ㅁ. The result is [심뉵]. The same change makes 이십육 sound like [이심뉵] and 오십육 like [오심뉵].

Rule 3: tensing (경음화). After a final ㄱ or ㅂ sound, a plain ㄱ, ㅅ or ㅂ becomes tense, so 십삼 (13), 십사 (14) and 십구 (19) sound like [십쌈], [십싸] and [십꾸], and 육십 (60) sounds like [육씹]. In Sino-Korean words, ㅅ after a final ㄹ is also tense, so 칠십 (70) and 팔십 (80) sound like [칠씹] and [팔씹]. The Sound column marks every case.

Do not try to memorise every rule. Learn the spelling, listen to the audio, and notice the pattern: a number ending in 일, 이 or 오 after 십 links its syllables, 육 after 십 turns into [뉵], and 삼, 사 and 구 after 십 sound tense.

Honest limit: the brackets above show the standard pronunciation, said carefully. Fast everyday speech blurs some syllables, and the audio is text-to-speech, so use the clips for rhythm and the brackets for the target sounds.

Sound changes explain why the list can look surprising. A few habits cause actual mistakes, and the next section lists them.

Which Mistakes Do Learners Make with Sino Korean Numbers?

Learners make three common mistakes with Sino-Korean numbers, and each has a quick fix. The list below shows the wrong form, the right form and the reason.

The last row needs care. The brackets in the table, such as [심뉵], show the sound only. In writing, always spell the number the regular way: 십육, 이십육, 오십육.

There is also a counting mistake that is not about the numbers at all: using Sino-Korean numbers to count objects. The phrase 사과 삼 개 sounds wrong, and the native 사과 세 개 is correct. The counter 개 takes native numbers up to 99. The page on native Korean numbers 1-100 covers the other list.

Knowing the mistakes helps you avoid them. The next question is where the numbers are used.

Where Do You Use the Numbers 1 to 100?

Sino-Korean numbers from 1 to 100 label things and measure amounts. They are the right choice for minutes, numbered items, scores, floors and percentages. Here are the most common uses for the 1-100 range.

The first two rows connect directly to telling time in Korean, where minutes use these numbers. Prices use them too, together with 만 for 10,000, which the guide to Korean money numbers explains.

Here is one sentence that puts three of the numbers in context. The sentence 육십팔 번 버스는 삼십 분 걸려요 means "Bus number 68 takes 30 minutes."

You can use a number only after you can say it, so the next section is a practice set.

Practice Set: Read the Numbers

Read each item aloud before you check the answer. These items pretend you are reading a menu, a bus list and a score board.

1. Menu item 35 (the number on the menu).
2. Bus number 68.
3. A score of 90 points.
4. The 11th floor.
5. 56 minutes.
6. Correct the mistake: 일십오.

Answers:

1. 삼십오 번 (samsibo beon)
2. 육십팔 번 (yuksippal beon)
3. 구십 점 (gusip jeom)
4. 십일 층 (sibil cheung)
5. 오십육 분 (osimnyuk bun), sounds like [오심뉵뿐]
6. 십오. Korean does not use 일 before 십 in 15.

If you answered five or more correctly, move on. If not, review the tens words and the dropped 일 rule.

How Do You Write the Numbers in Hangul and Digits?

Write Sino-Korean numbers in Hangul as one solid word up to 만 (10,000): 삼십오, 육십팔, 구십구. The spelling rules (한글 맞춤법 제44항) of the National Institute of Korean Language put a space only at each 만 unit in larger numbers. A counter after the number is a separate word, so you write 삼십오 번 with a space.

Korean text also uses Arabic digits, and a counter then attaches directly: 35번, 68번, 90점. Both forms are read the same way, as 삼십오 번, 육십팔 번 and 구십 점.

Digits do not always mean "read as one number". A phone number such as 010 is read digit by digit as 공일공, not as 십, while a price such as 90점 is read as the whole number 구십. The guide to how to say a phone number in Korean covers the digit-by-digit style.

Writing and reading are now clear. The last section marks where this list ends.

What Does This List Not Cover?

This list stops at 100. It does not teach large numbers, native numbers or counters. For each of those topics there is a separate page:

• 100 and above: 만 (10,000) and 억 (100 million) are in large numbers in Korean.
• The native list: the other system for counting objects is in native Korean numbers 1-100.
• Choosing a system: Sino vs native Korean numbers shows when to use each.
• The hanja: the Chinese characters behind each digit are not taught here.

What Should You Learn Next?

You can now read the Sino Korean numbers 1-100 and build any of them from tens and units. Continue in this order:

• Large numbers in Korean for 100, 1,000, 10,000 and beyond, which builds on the same pattern.
• Telling time in Korean to use the numbers for minutes.
• Native Korean numbers 1-100 to compare the two systems side by side.
• Korean money numbers to read prices.

Keep the rule in mind: the ten digits and 십 cover Sino Korean numbers 1-100.

Frequently Asked Questions

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