Colors In Korean: How To Make Your 2022 Extra Colorful?

If you’re an OG Korean drama fanatic, you probably know the K-drama entitled “Scarlet Heart Ryeo.” In this drama, you’ll see how colorful the Korean culture is. Colors 색깔 (saekkkal) play a big role in Korean tradition. If you have watched any Korean drama or movie that shows their culture and traditions, you’ll be amazed at how colors can make everything alive. This is why in this lesson, you will learn how to name colors in Korean. So, prepare yourself to learn the different colors in Korean and the modifications and grammar used.

Learning Korean is definitely one of the most important things you should consider before going to their country. If you learn Korean words and phrases, you will truly experience the colorful culture of Koreans.

Importance of Colors

Can you imagine what it would be like if there are no colors? Did you know that colors can sway thinking and change actions? We use colors in different ways. In our daily life, we are surrounded by colors, and these colors play a vital role in different aspects. Some colors can soothe our eyes, but some colors can irritate us. Colors can also cause reactions that may affect one’s life. Most of all, colors can bring hope for those who are in dark places in their lives.

Korean Colors: Let’s Start With The Colors Of Rainbow

We are always amazed by the rainbow we see after the rain. It helps us appreciate more the calmness and beauty after the rain has poured. The rainbow symbolizes hope in many cultures in different parts of the world. There are many common colors in Korean that you can learn. So, let’s start learning the colors of the rainbow. Each number has one example of a sentence or phrase that uses the colors in Korean.

Red: 빨간색 (Ppalkansaek)

Sample Sentence / Phrase:  빨간 자전거 좋아해요 (ppalgan jajeongeo joahaeyo) I like red bicycles

Orange: 주황색 (Juhwangsaek)

Sample Sentence / Phrase: 내 가방은 주황색이야 nae gabang-eun juhwangsaek-iya – My bag is orange.

Yellow: 노란색 (Noransaek)

Sample Sentence / Phrase: 노란색은 여름의 색 noransaek-eun yeoleum-ui saeg. – Yellow is the color of summer.

Green: 초록색 (Choroksaek)

Sample Sentence / Phrase: 초록색 공 choroksaek gong – A green ball

Blue: 파란색 (Paransaek)

Sample Sentence / Phrase: 가장 좋아하는 색은 파란색입니다. gajang joh-ahaneun saeg-eun paransaek-ibnida. – My favorite color is blue.

Purple: 보라색 (Bolasaek)

Sample Sentence / Phrase: 보라색 드레스가 우아하게 보입니다. bolasaeg deuleseuga uahage boibnida. – A purple dress looks elegant.

Remember! Pronunciation is really important. Learn the correct pronunciation of each word to avoid misunderstandings. Learning Korean pronunciation can be hard at first but, if you are committed to learning Korean, you can try Ling App, and you’ll learn not only colors in Korean but lots of words and phrases that will widen your vocabulary.

Other Colors In The Korean Language

If you have mastered naming the rainbow colors, you are now ready to learn more colors in Korean. These are also called secondary colors. But the color white and black is different because white and black are not a color. White contains the wavelengths of visible light, while black is the absence of visible light. For the sake of naming colors in Korean, we should still include white and black.

• black in Korean is 검정색 (geomjeongsaek)
• white in Korean is 하얀색 (hayansaek)
• gray in Korean is 회색 (hoesaek)
• brown in Korean is 갈색 (galsaek)
• dark brown in Korean is 밤색 (bamsaek)
• silver in Korean is 은색 (eunsaek)
• gold in Korean is 금색 (geumsaek)
• pink in Korean is 분홍색 (bunhongsaek)
• light blue / sky blue in Korean is 하늘색 (haneulsaek)
• navy blue in Korean is 남색 (namsaek)
• blue-green in Korean is 청록색 (cheongnoksaek)
• light green in Korean is 연두색 (eondusaek)
• rainbow in Korean is 무지개색 (mujigaesaek)

Let’s Modify Colors In Korean

Colors in Korean can also be modified. Like in the English language, there are ways to say light colors, pastel colors, and bright colors. In Korea, it’s almost the same. Nowadays, pastel colors have been a trend for graphic designs and minimalist themes. Also, in Korea, their products are usually in pastel and light colors. So, it will really be helpful if you learn how to modify colors in Korean.

To say the word pastel in Korean, they use 파스텔 (paseutel). It sounds almost like an English word.

For bright or vivid colors, they use 선명한 (seonmyeonghan).

Lastly, for light colors, they use 밝은 (balkeun), and for dark colors, they use 어두운 (eoduun). But, you have to remember that some light colors don’t use 밝은 (balkeun), such as “light blue.” In Korean, they don’t say “light blue”; rather, they say 하늘색 (haneulsaek) which means sky blue.

Just add these words before the color, and you’re good to go. Here are some examples of modified colors in Korean.

Grammar In Using Korean Color Words

We already know the Korean language’s color words. Let us now learn appropriate grammar using Korean color words. Korean colors that you have learned above can be used as nouns and adjectives. How? Understand the explanation below.

For starters, we can say that the grammar rules are pretty much straightforward. Remember also that for colors red, yellow, blue, white, and black. 색 is being removed.

Colors As An Adjective

빨간 자전거 좋아해요 (ppalgan jajeongeo joahaeyo) – I like red bicycles.

In this sentence, red (빨갛다 | ppalgata) modifies the bicycle.

자전거 빨개요 (jajeongeo ppalgaeyo)

The bicycle is red.

In this sentence, red (빨갛다 | ppalgata) describes the color of the bicycle. It is conjugated, and it becomes the main descriptive verb.

Colors As A Noun

자전거 빨간색이에요 (jajeongeo ppalgansaegieyo)

The bicycle is red.

This sentence uses red (빨갛다 | ppalgata) in noun form. It is accompanied by the verb 이다 (ida), which means “to be.”

Learning Korean grammar for colors, you should remember that most colors will not have descriptive verb base form. Because of this, you’ll be using the format noun + 색 (saek).

Talking about Korean grammar is pretty much a higher level for a beginner. If you want a more comprehensive lesson about Korean grammar, you can visit Ling App, learn from the basic words and phrases, and work your way up to sentence structure.

Color Your Life By Learning the Korean Language

Korean is one of the most interesting languages in Southeast Asia. Koreans do not just use their language to communicate but also reflect their culture and tradition passed from generation to generation. This is what makes Korean culture colorful. So, if you want your life to be more colorful, learn Korean with Ling App.

What’s with Ling App that can make one’s life colorful? It can teach you Korean and other languages, which will help you communicate with other people from different parts of the world. With various topics that you can choose from, you can learn Korean based on your interest. Suppose you are worried about the pronunciation, then good news because Ling App has an audio recording from a native speaker that will guide you. Lessons also use games to make your language learning more meaningful and colorful.

Imagine how great it would be to turn your blue days into meaningful ones by learning a new language. Learn Korean with Ling App now!