Key Facts
- Hangul: 장마; Revised Romanization: jangma
- Part of speech: noun
- Origin: native Korean
- Register: Neutral everyday word; the summer rainy season.
Rainy Season in Korean: What Does 장마 Mean?
장마 is not just rain: it names the long wet spell of summer, usually from late June to July in Korea. It behaves like an event, so it "starts" (장마가 시작되다) and "ends" (장마가 끝나다). The related term 장마철 means the rainy-season period itself, and 장마 전선 is the monsoon front on a weather map. The word is neutral and common in every register.
How Do You Pronounce 장마?
Two syllables, jang-ma. The first ends in the ng sound and the second is a plain ma. The ㅈ in jang is a soft, unaspirated consonant, between English "ch" and "j".
Example Sentences with 장마
장마가 시작됐어요.
Jangmaga sijakdwaesseoyo.
The rainy season has started.
A seasonal announcement. 시작됐어요 is the past of "start" in the passive-like form, as in "the rainy season has begun".
장마철에는 비가 많이 와요.
Jangmacheoreneun biga mani wayo.
It rains a lot during the rainy season.
장마철에는 sets the period and contrasts it with other times. 비가 많이 와요 reads "a lot of rain comes".
장마가 끝나면 더워요.
Jangmaga kkeunnamyeon deowoyo.
After the rainy season, it gets hot.
끝나면 means "if/when it ends". The sentence links the end of the rains to the arrival of heat.
Common Phrases and Collocations
Weather news reuses these phrases every June.
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 장마가 시작되다 | the rainy season starts |
| 장마철 | rainy season |
| 장마가 끝나다 | the rainy season ends |
| 장마 전선 | monsoon front |
The Mistake to Avoid
The common misconception is about timing, not grammar.
Wrong: Thinking 장마 is a spring rain season.
Correct: In Korea 장마 is usually late June through July, the start of high summer.
Spring showers are ordinary rain; the long, humid wet spell has its own name.
장마 Compared with 비 and 태풍
Two related weather words name different things.
| Word | Meaning | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| 비 | rain | General rain at any time; 장마 is one extended rainy period. |
| 태풍 | typhoon | A storm that can arrive in late summer, separate from the monsoon. |
Where Does the Word Come From?
장마 is a native Korean word, so there is no hanja. The related 장마철 adds 철, meaning season, to name the period.
Changing a Weekend Plan
Two friends are discussing a picnic during the summer rainy season. They use 장마 for the seasonal situation and 비 for the rain in the immediate forecast.
Jisu
장마라서 주말에도 비가 온대요.
Jangmaraseo jumaredo biga ondaeyo.
They say it’ll rain on the weekend too because it’s the rainy season.
Alex
그럼 소풍은 다음에 갈까요?
Geureom sopungeun daeume galkkayo?
Then shall we go on the picnic another time?
Jisu
좋아요. 대신 실내에서 만나요.
Joayo. Daesin sillaeeseo mannayo.
Sounds good. Let’s meet indoors instead.
장마라서 means “because it is the rainy season”. 온대요 reports something the speaker has heard, such as a forecast; it is not a claim to have seen the future rain. 대신 means “instead”, which introduces the replacement plan. The friends postpone the picnic without saying that the whole rainy season has ended.
What Does 장마 Tell You about the Weather?
장마 names a seasonal stretch, so the word can appear in a forecast even during a break in the rain. 비 names rain itself. A dry afternoon does not necessarily mean 장마 is over, just as a rainy spring afternoon does not become 장마 simply because you need an umbrella.
Weather broadcasts discuss where the 장마 전선, the monsoon front, is located or moving. The phrase names a weather feature rather than a town or a date. In everyday conversation, people are more likely to discuss the effect on plans, laundry or damp rooms than to describe the front’s precise position.
A weather app’s rain symbol tells you about expected rain for a place and time. The word 장마 adds the seasonal context. For a particular outing, read the local forecast as well as recognizing the season name. The vocabulary does not tell you whether your neighborhood will have continuous rain that day.
Phrases for the Beginning, Middle and End
장마가 시작되다 and 장마가 끝나다 describe the season beginning and ending. 장마가 계속되다 means “the rainy season continues”. 계속되다 helps when a forecast says the wet pattern is carrying on; it does not mean every hour has exactly the same weather.
장마철 빨래 means “laundry during the rainy season”. Here 장마철 sets the context for 빨래, “laundry”. Household talk may connect the season with slow drying and humid air. 습하다 means “to be humid” or “damp”, and 습기 is the noun “moisture” or “dampness”. These describe a different feature from rain falling outside.
긴 장마 means “a long rainy season”. The adjective describes duration, not the force of an individual downpour. 폭우 means “heavy rain” or “a downpour”, so it focuses on intensity. You can talk about 폭우 during 장마, but the two words answer different questions: how hard it rains versus which wet period it belongs to.
장마철에는 contains 철, “season” or “time”, followed by 에 and 는. The whole expression means “during the rainy season”, often with a contrast to other periods. This is the time frame in the existing example about frequent rain. It is useful for describing seasonal habits as well as the weather itself.
Words for a Wet Summer Day
| Korean | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 우산 | umbrella | The object you carry when rain is expected. |
| 습도 | humidity | The amount of moisture in the air. |
| 습기 | dampness / moisture | Useful for describing a damp room. |
| 폭우 | heavy rain | Describes intensity rather than a whole season. |
| 소나기 | shower | A sudden shower, rather than a seasonal period. |
The weather vocabulary lesson teaches the wider set for forecasts and daily plans.
Quick Self-Test
- Does one dry afternoon necessarily mean 장마 has ended?
- Does 긴 장마 describe duration or rain intensity?
- Which word describes humidity: 습도 or 우산?
Show answers
- No. The seasonal rainy pattern can include breaks.
- Duration: it means a long rainy season.
- 습도. 우산 means umbrella.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you say "rainy season" in Korean?
Say 장마 (jangma). It is a neutral word for the summer monsoon.
When is the Korean rainy season?
It typically runs from late June to July.
What does 장마철 mean?
장마철 means the rainy-season period, with 철 as the "season" part.
How do you say "the rainy season has started"?
Say 장마가 시작됐어요.
Related Words and What to Learn Next
- Weather words appear together in the weather vocabulary list.
- More seasons and weather words are in Korean words A to Z.
- Put the monsoon next to plain rain in a weather set in your vocabulary flashcard decks.
- The everyday word is on the rain page.
- Storms are on the typhoon page.
- Next in the weather list is temperature.