Traditional Korean writing—both Classical Chinese used in Korea and early Hangul texts—did not use modern spacing or punctuation. Instead, sentences flowed continuously, and readers had to rely on grammar particles and context to interpret meaning. Later on, modern punctuation and spacing were gradually introduced in the 20th century through printing and education reforms. As a result, punctuation in Korean is a relatively recent system, and even today it is used more lightly and flexibly than in English. This guide, therefore, explains which marks are truly common in everyday Korean sentences and also introduces other symbols that learners should be aware of.
1. Sentence-ending Marks
- 마침표 (.) – Period
저는 학생입니다. – “I am a student.” - 물음표 (?) – Question Mark
지금 시간 괜찮아요? – “Is now a good time?” - 느낌표 (!) – Exclamation Mark
조심해! – “Watch out!”
2. Pausing & Connecting Marks
- 쉼표 (,) – Comma
사과, 배, 포도를 샀어요. – “I bought apples, pears, and grapes.” - 쌍점 (:) – Colon
준비물: 노트북, 어댑터, 메모장 – “Items: laptop, adapter, notepad” - 줄임표 (…) – Ellipsis
음… 글쎄요. – “Well… I’m not sure.” - 가운뎃점 (·) – Middle Dot
한·중·일 협력 회의예요. – “It’s a Korea–China–Japan cooperation meeting.” - 빗금 (/) – Slash
남자/여자 중 하나를 선택하세요. – “Choose either male/female.” - 물결표 (~) – Tilde (range)
수업은 9시~11시예요. – “Class is from 9 to 11.”
3. Quotation Marks
- 따옴표 (“ ”) – Quotation Marks
그는 “곧 도착해요”라고 했어요. – He said, “I’ll arrive soon.” - 작은따옴표 (‘ ’) – Single Quotation Marks
그는 “나는 ‘지금’이 좋아”라고 말했어요. – He said, “I like ‘right now.’”
4. Brackets (괄호류)
- 괄호 ( ) – Parentheses
저는 한국(서울)에서 태어났어요. – “I was born in Korea (Seoul).” - 대괄호 [ ] – Square Brackets
이 문장은 [편집자 주]가 포함돼요. – “This sentence includes an [editor’s note].” - 중괄호 { } – Curly Brackets
- 꺾쇠 < > – Angle Brackets
5. Numbers, Units, and Currency
- 퍼센트 (%) – Percent
할인율은 20%입니다. – “The discount rate is 20%.” - 도 기호 (°), 섭씨/화씨 (℃/℉) – Degree/Celsius/Fahrenheit
실내 온도는 23℃예요. – “The room is 23℃.” - 화폐 기호 (₩/$/€/¥) – Currency Symbols
가격은 ₩12,900입니다. – “The price is ₩12,900.”
6. Other Symbols
- 골뱅이 (@) – At Sign
문의: dhdldrmfo@gmail.com – “Contact: dhdldrmfk@gmail.com” - 샵 (#) – Hashtag/Number Sign
#한국어공부 – “#KoreanStudy”
7. Mathematical Symbols (Names Only)
- 더하기 (+) – Plus
- 빼기 (−) – Minus
- 곱하기 (×) – Multiplication
- 나누기 (÷) – Division
- 등호 (=) – Equal Sign
- 같지 않음 (≠) – Not Equal To
- 작다 (<) – Less Than
- 크다 (>) – Greater Than
- 작거나 같다 (≤) – Less Than or Equal To
- 크거나 같다 (≥) – Greater Than or Equal To
- 무한대 (∞) – Infinity
- 제곱 (²), 세제곱 (³) – Square, Cube
- 루트 (√) – Square Root
- 파이 (π) – Pi
- 시그마 (Σ) – Summation
- 적분 (∫) – Integral
- 원소 기호 (∈), 부분집합 (⊂), 합집합 (∪), 교집합 (∩)
Closing
In Korean, everyday punctuation is used more sparingly compared to English. For instance, marks like the period, comma, and quotation marks cover most needs in ordinary writing. In addition, brackets are frequently used for adding notes or clarifications. Meanwhile, mathematical and technical symbols are widely recognized, yet they appear primarily in specialized contexts such as textbooks, academic papers, or coding, rather than in daily sentences.
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