Counting from the Hundreds to the Millions in Korean
Last Updated: • Published • by orryanIn Korea, you'd often have to deal with hundreds and millions of South Korean Won (KRW). For context, 10 USD is equivalent to around 13,000 KRW, and 1,000 USD is equivalent to around 1,3 million KRW. If you’re traveling, chances are you’ll be dealing with money between and beyond this amount so knowing how to count them in Korean would certainly be helpful!
Featured article photo: South Korea by Kim Dae Jeung
Starting from 101, you only have to learn the Sino-Korean numbering system, as the Native Korean numbering system is not used for numbers above 100. That’s a relief, isn’t it? Before you go through this lesson, make sure you know how to count from 0 to 100 in Korean first:
101 → Baek-il (백일)
As a refresher, recall that 100 in the Sino-Korean numbering system is called baek (백), and to count forward, simply add numbers behind it.
e.g. Baek (백) + il (일) = Baek- il (백일)
200 → I-baek (이백)
To express numbers starting from 200 to 900, add numbers from 2- to 9- in front of baek (백).
e.g. I (이) + baek (백) = I-baek (이백)
300 → Sam-baek (삼백)
400 → Sa-baek (사백)
500 → O-baek (오백)
600 → Yuk-baek (육백)
700 → Chil-baek (칠백)
800 → Pal-baek (팔백)
900 → Gu-baek (구백)
Counting Thousands → ... + Cheon (천) + ...
'Thousand' in Korean is Cheon (천). To count in the thousands, simply add numbers in front of and/or behind it.
For example:
- Six thousand = Yuk-cheon (육천)
- Seven thousand = Chil-cheon (칠천)
- Six thousand seven hundred = Yuk-cheon chil-baek (육천 칠백)
Counting Ten Thousands → ... + Man (만) + ...
Examples:
- Eighty thousand = Pal-man (팔만)
- Ninety thousand = Gu-man (구만)
- Eighty thousand nine hundred = Pal-man gu-baek (팔만 구백)
Counting Hundreds of Thousands → ... + Sipman (십만) + ...
Hundreds of thousands is made up of 10 (Sip 십) x 10,000 (Man 만), so together, it is called Sipman (십만). Examples:
- Two hundred thousands = I-sipman (이십만)
- Three hundred thousands = Sam-sipman (삼십만)
Counting Millions → ... + Baekman (백만) + ...
A million is Baekman (백만). Think of it as 100 (Baek 백) x 10,000 (Man 만). Examples:
- Four million = Sa-baekman (사백만)
- Five million = O-baekman (오백만)
Counting Tens of Millions → ... + Cheonman (천만) + ...
1,000 (Cheon 천) x 10,000 (Man 만) is 10,000,000 (Cheonman 천만). Examples:
- Six million = Yuk-cheonman (육천만)
- Seven million = Chil-cheonman (칠천만)
Your Turn
Try writing out these numbers in Korean and feel free to post them as comments below:
- 110
- 245
- 3,700
- 26,480
- 574,000
- 1,680,000
- 71,300,900
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