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KOREAN COUNTERS FOR LIVING THINGS
In Korean, specific measure words (단위 명사) are used when counting living beings such as people, animals, flowers, and trees.
These measure words help specify the type of being being counted and are always used with numbers.
GRAMMAR STRUCTURE
In Korean, the basic structure for using measure words is:
PATTERN
Object + Number + Measure Word
In a full sentence the structure looks like:
사람 세 명이 왔어요
Three people came명 FOR PEOPLE
The word 명 (myeong) is used to count people. When counting people in more formal contexts, 분 is used as a more polite form.
| Informal | 우리 집에 친구 두 명이 놀러 왔어. | Two friends came to my house. |
| 내일 우리 세 명은 같이 영화를 볼 거야. | Tomorrow, the three of us will watch a movie together. | |
| Formal (어요) | 이번 모임에 네 명이 올 거예요. | Four people will come to this meeting. |
| 오늘 학생 다섯 명이 결석했어요. 아파서 못 왔어요. | Five students were absent today. They couldn’t come because they were sick. | |
| 이번 여행에는 이모 세 명이 함께할 거예요. | Three of my aunts will join this trip. | |
| Formal (습니다) | 선생님 두 분이 회의에 참석하셨습니다. 중요한 논의가 있었습니다. | Two teachers attended the meeting. There was an important discussion. |
마리 FOR ANIMALS
마리 (mari) is used to count animals, from pets like dogs and cats to larger animals like cows and horses.
| Informal | 나는 강아지 한 마리를 키우고 있어. | I’m raising one dog. |
| 고양이 두 마리가 나를 쳐다보고 있어. | Two cats are staring at me. | |
| Formal (어요) | 친구가 새 두 마리를 샀어요. 이름도 지어줬어요. | My friend bought two birds. They even named them. |
| 고양이 세 마리가 함께 놀고 있어요. 정말 귀여워요. | Three cats are playing together. They’re so cute. | |
| 테사가 강아지 다섯 마리를 산책시키고 있어요. | Tessa is walking five dogs. | |
| Formal (습니다) | 동물원에서 기린 세 마리를 보았습니다. | I saw three giraffes at the zoo. |
송이 FOR FLOWERS
송이 (songi) is used to count flowers or clusters of items, such as bunches of bananas or grapes.
| Informal | 장미 두 송이를 샀어. | I bought two roses. |
| 포도 세 송이가 익어가고 있어. | Three bunches of grapes are ripening. | |
| Formal (어요) | 친구에게 꽃 네 송이를 선물했어요. 정말 기뻐했어요. | I gave my friend four flowers as a gift. They were really happy. |
| 꽃집에서 장미 다섯 송이를 샀어요. 집에 장식할 거예요. | I bought five roses at the flower shop. I’ll decorate my house with them. | |
| 오늘은 정원에 꽃 여섯 송이가 피었어요. | Six flowers bloomed in the garden today. | |
| Formal (입니다) | 꽃을 세는 단위는 송이입니다. 송이는 사람 이름으로도 쓰입니다. | The unit for counting flowers is a flower. A flower is also used as a person’s name. |
그루 FOR TREES
그루 (geuru) is used to count trees, whether in a garden, park, or forest.
| Informal | 공원에 나무 세 그루가 있어. | There are three trees in the park. |
| 우리 집 앞에 나무 한 그루가 자라고 있어. | A tree is growing in front of our house. | |
| Formal (어요) | 정원에 나무 네 그루를 심었어요. | I planted four trees in the garden. |
| 공원에 다섯 그루의 나무가 있습니다. 나무들이 정말 큽니다. | There are five trees in the park. The trees are really big. | |
| 정원에 있는 나무 한 그루는 아버지가 심은 나무예요. | The one tree in the garden is the one my father planted. |
필 FOR HORSES
필 (pil) is specifically used to count horses or sometimes other large animals.
| Informal | 농장에서 말 두 필을 봤어. | I saw two horses at the farm. |
| 경마장에서 말 한 필이 우승했어. | One horse won the race at the horse track. | |
| Formal (어요) | 경마장에서 말 세 필이 출전했어요. 경기가 정말 빠르고 흥미로웠어요. | Three horses competed in the race. The race was fast and exciting. |
| 농장에서 말 네 필이 열심히 일하고 있어요. | Four horses are working hard at the farm. | |
| Formal (습니다) | 경주에서 다섯 필의 말이 경쟁하고 있습니다. | Five horses are competing in the race. |
쌍 FOR PAIRS OF ANIMALS
쌍 (ssang) is used to count pairs of animals, usually when animals are seen or described as a couple.
| Informal | 저기 같이 있는 백조들을 봐! 정말 잘 어울리는 한쌍이야. | Look at those swans together! They’re such a fitting pair. |
| 새 두 쌍이 나무에서 쉬고 있어. | Two pairs of birds are resting in the tree. | |
| Formal (어요) | 동물원에서 기린 한 쌍을 봤어요. 정말 아름다웠어요. | I saw a pair of giraffes at the zoo. They were really beautiful. |
| 백조 두 쌍이 함께 물에서 헤엄치고 있었어요. 아주 평화로웠어요. | Two pairs of swans were swimming together in the water. It was very peaceful. | |
| 산책로에서 새 세 쌍이 노래하고 있어요. 정말 아름다운 소리예요. | Three pairs of birds are singing along the trail. It’s such a beautiful sound. |
✅ Learn more Korean measure words in the following lessons:
- Korean counters for general objects
- Korean counters for specific items
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FAQs
What is the Korean measure word for people?
The word 명 (myeong) is used to count people. When counting people in more formal contexts, 분 is used as a more polite form.
What is the Korean measure word for animals?
마리 (mari) is used to count animals, from pets like dogs and cats to larger animals like cows and horses.
What is the Korean measure word for plants?
송이 (songi) is used to count flowers or clusters of items, such as bunches of bananas or grapes.
그루 (geuru) is used to count trees, whether in a garden, park, or forest.
What is the Korean measure word for pairs?
쌍 (ssang) is used to count pairs of animals, usually when animals are seen or described as a couple.
Is Korean SOV or SVO?
Korean is a SOV language, meaning the basic language structure is:
Subject + Object + Verb
Japanese, Mongolian and Turkish are also SOV languages for example.
English is a SVO language: subject + verb + object
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Learn more about Korean sentence structure here.
Can I learn Korean with LTL Language School?
Yes!
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