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# Sino-Korean Numbers: When to Use Them and How to Read Big Numbers
- URL: https://www.youngssam-korean.com/sino-korean-numbers/
- Published: 2026-09-17T07:10:15.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-17T07:10:15.000Z
- Description: Learn when to use Sino-Korean numbers, build numbers beyond 10, and read large numbers with 만 and 억. Includes everyday examples, the rules for dropping 일, and a quick practice quiz.
- Author: YoungSsam
- Tags: Vocabulary & Expressions

Korean has two number systems: **Sino-Korean numbers** (일, 이, 삼) and **native Korean numbers** (하나, 둘, 셋).

In this guide, we’ll focus on 한자어 수, or Sino-Korean numbers—the numbers you use for prices, dates, minutes, phone numbers, and more. Once you know 1–10 and a few place-value words, you can build your way up to 100 million!

## When do you use Sino-Korean numbers?

You’ll hear Sino-Korean numbers in these everyday situations:

- **Prices:** 3,500원 → 삼천오백 원 (3,500 won)
- **Dates:** 9월 17일 → 구 월 십칠 일 (September 17)
- **Years:** 2026년 → 이천이십육 년
- **Minutes and seconds:** 20분 30초 → 이십 분 삼십 초
- **Floor numbers:** 3층 → 삼 층 (the third floor)
- **Phone numbers:** 010 → 공일공 (read each digit separately)

**Watch out when telling the time!** In everyday 12-hour time expressions, use native Korean numbers for the hour and Sino-Korean numbers for the minutes: **3시 20분 → 세 시 이십 분**.

A small date exception: June is **유월**, and October is **시월**.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/3e/77/3e77e67a-c356-4231-b7c2-8a02146832bb/content/images/2026/09/------------------------------Sino-Korean-Numbers--2.png)

## Start with 1–10

**1 일 · 2 이 · 3 삼 · 4 사 · 5 오** 
**6 육 · 7 칠 · 8 팔 · 9 구 · 10 십**

These are your building blocks. You don’t need a new word for every number after ten—you combine the words you already know.

## How to read numbers after 10

### 11–19: 십 + the ones digit

- 11 → 십 + 일 → **십일**
- 12 → 십 + 이 → **십이**
- 15 → 십 + 오 → **십오**
- 19 → 십 + 구 → **십구**

### 20, 30, 40…: a number + 십

Put a number before 십 to show how many tens you have.

- 20 → 이 × 십 → **이십**
- 30 → 삼 × 십 → **삼십**
- 50 → 오 × 십 → **오십**
- 90 → 구 × 십 → **구십**

Now combine the tens and ones:

- 24 → 이십 + 사 → **이십사**
- 37 → 삼십 + 칠 → **삼십칠**
- 68 → 육십 + 팔 → **육십팔**
- 99 → 구십 + 구 → **구십구**

## Hundreds and thousands: 백 and 천

**100 is 백. 1,000 is 천.** Read from the largest place value to the smallest.

- 200 → **이백** (two hundreds)
- 350 → **삼백오십** (three hundreds + five tens)
- 1,234 → **천이백삼십사**
- 5,678 → **오천육백칠십팔**

**Skip any place with a zero.** You don’t say a word for that empty place when reading the number’s value.

- 105 → 백 + 오 → **백오**
- 1,020 → 천 + 이십 → **천이십**
- 3,008 → 삼천 + 팔 → **삼천팔**

Phone numbers work differently: you read the individual digits, including zeros. In phone numbers, zero is commonly read as 공.

## Why say 십, not 일십?

In everyday number reading, **drop 일 before 십, 백, and 천**. You also normally say 만 for 10,000.

- 10 → **십**, rather than 일십
- 100 → **백**, rather than 일백
- 1,000 → **천**, rather than 일천
- 10,000 → **만**, rather than 일만

That’s why **1,110 is 천백십**, and **11,111 is 만 천백십일**. The final 일 stays because it represents the ones digit.

You may see forms such as 일천 or 일만 in formal written amounts. They are not always wrong; 십, 백, 천, and 만 are the natural starting point for everyday use.

## The key to big Korean numbers: 만

English groups large numbers around thousands, millions, and billions. Korean uses major units that step up every **four digits**: 만 (10,000), then 억 (100,000,000).

Start by asking: **“How many groups of 10,000 are there?”**

- 10,000 → **만** (ten thousand)
- 100,000 → **십만** (one hundred thousand)
- 1,000,000 → **백만** (one million)
- 10,000,000 → **천만** (ten million)
- 100,000,000 → **일억** (one hundred million)

For example, 50,000 is five groups of 만, so it’s **오만**. And 230,000 is twenty-three groups of 만, so it’s **이십삼만**.

If there are digits left over, read them after 만:

- 35,000 → **삼만 오천**
- 72,500 → **칠만 이천오백**
- 123,456 → **십이만 삼천사백오십육**
- 1,500,000 → **백오십만**

**A useful trick:** ignore the printed commas for a moment and split the number into groups of four digits from the right.

**123,456 → 12 | 3456**  
12 groups of 만 + 3,456  
→ **십이만 삼천사백오십육**

## Keep 일 in 일억

Here’s an important difference: **100,000,000 is 일억**. Unlike 십, 백, 천, and the usual 만, keep 일 when reading one hundred million.

- 100,000,000 → **일억**
- 200,000,000 → **이억**
- 1,000,000,000 → **십억** (one billion)

For a longer number, use the same four-digit grouping:

**123,456,789 → 1 | 2345 | 6789**  
1 억 + 2,345 만 + 6,789  
→ **일억 이천삼백사십오만 육천칠백팔십구**

Read each small group first, then add its unit. You don’t have to work out the entire number at once.

## Try reading these numbers

Say each number aloud before checking the answers: **16 / 48 / 109 / 2,350 / 45,000 / 320,000 / 1,000,000 / 100,000,000**.

### Answers

- 16 → **십육**
- 48 → **사십팔**
- 109 → **백구**
- 2,350 → **이천삼백오십**
- 45,000 → **사만 오천**
- 320,000 → **삼십이만**
- 1,000,000 → **백만**
- 100,000,000 → **일억**

These are the written forms; connected Korean speech can change how some sounds are pronounced. For example, 십육 is pronounced \[심뉵\].

For a little everyday practice, choose one price from a menu or receipt. **4,500원 is 사천오백 원**, and **12,000원 is 만 이천 원**. Start small and say the numbers out loud!

[한자어 수 (Sino Korean Numbers)한자어 수 (Sino Korean Numbers).pdf75 KBdownload-circle](https://www.youngssam-korean.com/content/files/2026/09/------------------------------Sino-Korean-Numbers-.pdf "Download")

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