Native Korean and Sino-Korean Counters

Counting things and people in Korean is slightly different with most western languages in that a "counter" word needs to be added after the number; the counter to use depends on the nature of the object or person talked about. The list below lists all the counters encountered in most situations.

There are two types of counters in Korean: counters that are used with native Korean numbers (하나, 둘, 셋...) and counters that are used with Sino-Korean numbers (일, 이, 삼...); the associations between each counter and the corresponding numeral system need to be memorized (counters used with native Korean numbers can have a Chinese origin, and counters used with Sino-Korean numbers can have a Korean origin).

Difference between V-려고 하다 and V-기로 하다, to plan something

Wondered about the difference between V-려고 하다 and V-기로 하다 when they mean "to plan something"? Look no further!

This post focuses on the two constructs when they mean "to plan something."

• Simply put, V-(으)려고 했다 (했어요) means "to have planned something (but the plan did not go through)." The idea of "intention" is communicated with this pattern. 
• Simply put, V-기로 했다 (했어요) also means "to have planned something." The idea of "decision" is communicated with this pattern.

Both expressions are most often used with 하다 conjugated in the past tense, so V-(으)려고 했다 and V-기로 했다. However, V-(으)려고 했다 means the plan has not been completed, were canceled, abandoned, etc.; because of that it is often followed by -ㄴ/는데 or -지만 (V-(으)려고 했는데 / V-(으)려고 했지만).

Book Review - Elementary Korean

Elementary Korean by Ross King and Jaehoon Yeon, and Insun Lee is a great textbook for people starting Korean up to upper-beginners. The book is composed of 13 lessons and two review chapters. The first four lessons focus on reading and writing individual characters, and learning how to pronounce Korean words. The remaining lessons consist of one to four dialogues and reading passages on conversational and practical topics, such as introducing oneself, booking a train ticket, or deciding what to eat and ordering at restaurants. Each lesson also introduces vocabulary relevant to the theme of the readings, and corresponding grammar points.