Korean tells time with a clever split: use native Korean numbers for the hour, then Sino-Korean numbers for the minutes. 세 시 이십 분 (se si isip bun) is 3:20—native 세 for three o’clock, Sino-Korean 이십 for twenty minutes.
To ask the time politely, say 지금 몇 시예요? (Jigeum myeot siyeyo?)—“What time is it now?” Once the two number teams know their jobs, the clock follows one reliable formula.
The quick formula
[native Korean hour] + 시 + [Sino-Korean minutes] + 분
| Time | Korean | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| 1:00 | 한 시 | han si |
| 2:30 | 두 시 반 | du si ban |
| 3:10 | 세 시 십 분 | se si sip bun |
| 6:25 | 여섯 시 이십오 분 | yeoseot si isibo bun |
| 9:45 | 아홉 시 사십오 분 | ahop si sasibo bun |
If seeing two forms for “three” still feels strange, the Korean numbers guide explains where each system lives. For this lesson, remember one sentence: native owns the hour; Sino owns the minutes.
Give the two systems team colors. Imagine native Korean numbers in blue on the left side of the colon and Sino-Korean numbers in orange on the right. When you see 4:20, your brain picks blue 네 시, then orange 이십 분.
Ask “What time is it?”
The standard polite question is:
지금 몇 시예요?
Jigeum myeot siyeyo?
What time is it now?
지금 means now, 몇 asks what/which number, and 시 marks the hour. In casual speech with a friend, the ending can shorten to 지금 몇 시야? (Jigeum myeot siya?).
To ask about an event, put the event topic before the question:
- 영화가 몇 시에 시작해요? — What time does the movie start?
- 몇 시에 만날까요? — What time shall we meet?
- 몇 시에 퇴근해요? — What time do you finish work?
Hours use native Korean numbers
Before 시, the native numbers one through four take their shortened counting forms: 하나 becomes 한, 둘 becomes 두, 셋 becomes 세, and 넷 becomes 네.
| Hour | Korean | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| 1:00 | 한 시 | han si |
| 2:00 | 두 시 | du si |
| 3:00 | 세 시 | se si |
| 4:00 | 네 시 | ne si |
| 5:00 | 다섯 시 | daseot si |
| 6:00 | 여섯 시 | yeoseot si |
| 7:00 | 일곱 시 | ilgop si |
| 8:00 | 여덟 시 | yeodeol si |
| 9:00 | 아홉 시 | ahop si |
| 10:00 | 열 시 | yeol si |
| 11:00 | 열한 시 | yeolhan si |
| 12:00 | 열두 시 | yeoldu si |
This is why three o’clock is 세 시, not 셋 시 and not 삼 시 in ordinary South Korean conversation.
Minutes switch to Sino-Korean
After the hour, change number systems. Build any minute from the Sino-Korean set and add 분 (bun):
| Minutes | Korean | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | 오 분 | o bun |
| 10 | 십 분 | sip bun |
| 15 | 십오 분 | sibo bun |
| 20 | 이십 분 | isip bun |
| 25 | 이십오 분 | isibo bun |
| 30 | 삼십 분 | samsip bun |
| 45 | 사십오 분 | sasibo bun |
| 55 | 오십오 분 | osibo bun |
Korean does not need to say a spoken zero before five minutes. 3:05 is simply 세 시 오 분—hour three, minute five.
Half past, exactly, and around
Use 반 (ban, half) instead of 삼십 분 for :30:
- 두 시 반 — 2:30
- 오후 일곱 시 반 — 7:30 p.m.
For an exact hour, add 정각 (jeonggak): 세 시 정각 means three o’clock sharp. For an approximate time, add 쯤 (jjeum): 세 시쯤 means around three.
Korean normally reads 3:15 as 세 시 십오 분 and 3:45 as 세 시 사십오 분. You do not need to learn “quarter past” and “quarter to” as separate clock formulas.
지금 몇 시예요?
Jigeum myeot siyeyo?
What time is it now?
지금 두 시 반이에요.
Jigeum du si banieyo.
It’s 2:30 now.
오후 여섯 시 십오 분에 만나요.
Ohu yeoseot si sibo bune mannayo.
Let’s meet at 6:15 p.m.
가게는 오전 아홉 시부터 오후 다섯 시까지 열어요.
Gageneun ojeon ahop sibuteo ohu daseot sikkaji yeoreoyo.
The shop is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
기차는 일곱 시 오 분에 출발해요.
Gichaneun ilgop si o bune chulbalhaeyo.
The train leaves at 7:05.
A.M., p.m., noon, and midnight
Put 오전 (ojeon, a.m.) or 오후 (ohu, p.m.) before the clock time:
| Meaning | Korean | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00 a.m. | 오전 여덟 시 | ojeon yeodeol si |
| 2:30 p.m. | 오후 두 시 반 | ohu du si ban |
| noon | 정오 | jeong-o |
| midnight | 자정 | jajeong |
Everyday period words can be more natural than the formal a.m./p.m. pair: 아침 morning, 낮 daytime, 저녁 evening, 밤 night, and 새벽 the late-night-to-dawn period. 내일 아침 일곱 시 is “tomorrow morning at seven.”
Never build ordinary clock time with one number system all the way through. 3:30 is not 삼 시 삼십 분 and not 세 시 서른 분. Mix them: native 세 시 + Sino 삼십 분, or use 세 시 반.
Put the time into a sentence
Use 에 after a specific time when it marks when an action happens:
- 여덟 시에 일어나요. — I wake up at eight.
- 여섯 시 반에 만나요. — We meet at 6:30.
For a range, add 부터 (buteo, from) after the starting time and 까지 (kkaji, until) after the ending: 아홉 시부터 다섯 시까지 means from nine to five.
Combine a weekday and time from broad to specific: 금요일 오후 일곱 시에—on Friday at 7 p.m. The Korean days of the week guide gives you every calendar label you need.
Clock time versus duration
The counter 시 names a point on the clock. 시간 (sigan) counts how many hours something lasts:
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 두 시 | 2:00 |
| 두 시간 | two hours |
| 세 시에 시작해요 | It starts at 3:00. |
| 세 시간 공부해요 | I study for three hours. |
Minutes use 분 for both a clock reading and a duration; the sentence context tells you which one is meant.
Digital schedules and 24-hour time
Transport boards, tickets, hospital appointments, and phone settings often display 24-hour time such as 14:30 or 21:05. In daily conversation, people commonly convert it: 14:30 becomes 오후 두 시 반, and 21:05 becomes 오후 아홉 시 오 분.
Formal or technical contexts can read the 24-hour number directly, but the native-hour 12-hour system is the best speaking default for a beginner.
Korean event notices often stack several precise pieces: date, weekday in parentheses, and 24-hour time—for example, “8월 20일(목) 14:30.” The single character 목 is Thursday. Learning the weekday abbreviations and the digital clock together lets you decode the whole line at a glance.
A two-minute clock challenge
Say the answers before checking them:
- 4:00 — 네 시 (ne si)
- 3:05 — 세 시 오 분 (se si o bun)
- 7:30 p.m. — 오후 일곱 시 반 (ohu ilgop si ban)
- 8:20 a.m. — 오전 여덟 시 이십 분 (ojeon yeodeol si isip bun)
- around 5:00 — 다섯 시쯤 (daseot si jjeum)
For a stronger second round, color-code the hour and minute systems on paper. If both halves use the same color, correct the number family before checking the Korean.
Common questions
Why does Korean mix two number systems?
That is simply the established division of labor: native Korean counts clock hours, while Sino-Korean counts minutes. The same split is used consistently enough to become automatic with practice.
Can I omit 분?
Keep it in a full time statement. Unlike some languages, Korean normally says the minute counter. Replace 삼십 분 with 반 only for half past.
Do I always need 에 after the time?
Use 에 when the time modifies an action. Leave it out when the time itself is the statement: 지금 세 시예요—“It is three now.”
How do I ask “What time shall we meet?”
Say 몇 시에 만날까요? (Myeot sie mannalkkayo?). A simple answer is 세 시 어때요?—“How about three?”
Keep learning Korean
You can now switch number systems at the colon, use 반 for half past, and build a Friday appointment from start to finish. Practice the clock inside short conversations with our free essential Korean phrases. Today, read five phone times aloud and exaggerate the system switch; tomorrow, do it without thinking about the labels.
