사잇소리사잇소리 — Why 손가락 Is Said 손까락
When two nouns are compounded, the first consonant of the second one often comes out tense: 손가락 is 손까락, 술집 is 술찝, 글자 is 글짜, 인기 is 인끼. There is no stop in front of it and no rule that predicts it. It simply happens in some compounds and not others.
This is the page to read differently from the other ten. Everything else in this section is a rule you apply; this is a property of individual words, and the only reason it can be taught honestly at all is that the dictionary transcribes it, word by word, and this site read those transcriptions.
- 단어Words that do this
- 503
- 소리 변화Times it fires
- 804
- 표준 발음법Standard
- 제28항, 제30항
- 예측 가능Predictable
- No
규칙The rule
The shape it takes — though not when it takes it.
| Written | Said | Example |
|---|---|---|
| noun + noun | the second tenses | 손가락 → 손까락 |
| 사이시옷 spellings | the ㅅ is not said, the tension is | 숫자 → 수짜 |
| no marking at all | nothing in the spelling says so | 인기 → 인끼 |
적용 예Worked through
Every arrow is a rule, and every final form is the dictionary's own transcription.
주의할 점Why this one is a list
It is not predictable, and pretending otherwise is what makes textbooks vague here. 손가락 tenses and 손잡이 does not. 김밥 is heard both ways by native speakers and the standard has changed its mind about it in living memory.
Sometimes the tension is written, as a ㅅ inserted between the two halves — the 사이시옷. That ㅅ is not a sound: 숫자 is 수짜, and the ㅅ is a diacritic marking a pronunciation that would otherwise be invisible.
예시 단어Every word in the dictionary that does this
Commonest first. Each links to the word's own row, with its meaning, examples and audio.
The 150 commonest of 503 words on this site that do this
- 사건 사ː껀 incident, event
- 성격 성ː껵 personality
- 조건 조껀 condition
- 가능성 가ː능썽 possibility
- 관점 관쩜 point of view
- 인기 인끼 popularity
- 평가 평ː까 evaluation, assessment
- 정권 정꿘 political power
- 성과 성꽈 result
- 손가락 손까락 finger
- 오랫동안 오래똥안 a long time
- 눈길 눈낄 gaze
- 글자 글짜 letter, character
- 미적 미쩍 aesthetic
- 문제점 문ː제쩜 problematic point
- 본격적 본껵쩍 genuine
- 숫자 수ː짜 number
- 주가 주까 stock price
- 물가 물까 water's edge
- 증권 증꿘 securities
- 눈빛 눈삗 the glitter of one's eyes
- 물속 물쏙 in the water
- 평가하다 평ː까하다 to evaluate
- 필요성 피료썽 necessity, need
- 안방 안빵 inner room
- 초점 초쩜 focus
- 헌법 헌ː뻡 constitution
- 머릿속 머리쏙 inside one's head
- 여건 여ː껀 conditions
- 마음속 마음쏙 deep in one's heart
- 시점 시쩜 point in time
- 후춧가루 후추까루 ground pepper
- 문자 문짜 letter, character
- 용돈 용ː똔 pocket money
- 통증 통ː쯩 pain
- 무조건 무조껀 unconditional
- 설정하다 설쩡하다 to setup, to establish
- 술집 술찝 bar, pub
- 영장 영짱 warrant
- 물기 물끼 moisture
- 성적 성ː쩍 achievement
- 햇살 해쌀 sunshine
- 발전시키다 발쩐시키다 to develop, to advance
- 불빛 불삗 light, beam
- 엄격하다 엄껴카다 strict, severe
- 정치권 정치꿘 political circles
- 곳곳도 곧꼬또 everywhere
- 밀가루 밀까루 flour
- 한자 한ː짜 Chinese character
- 인격 인껵 personality, character
- 중요성 중ː요썽 importance
- 손바닥 손빠닥 palm of the hand
- 장점 장쩜 advantage, strength, merit
- 기법 기뻡 technique
- 수도권 수도꿘 capital area, metropolitan area
- 햇빛 해삗 sunlight, sunshine
- 바닷가 바다까 beach
- 인권 인꿘 human rights
- 증권사 증꿘사 securities firm
- 왕권 왕꿘 regality, royalty
- 나뭇가지 나무까지 tree branch
- 물결 물껼 wave
- 유권자 유ː꿘자 voter
- 물고기 물꼬기 fish
- 전적 전쩍 complete, overall
- 점수 점쑤 score
- 평가되다 평ː까되다 to be evaluated, assessed
- 눈동자 눈똥자 pupil
- 몸짓 몸찓 gesture
- 갈수록 갈쑤록 the more ... the more
- 소수 소쑤 minority
- 쟁점 쟁쩜 contestation
- 효율적 효ː율쩍 the utility factor, efficiency
- 가슴속 가슴쏙 heart, mind
- 금융권 금늉꿘 financial institution
- 장기 장끼 long term
- 발걸음 발꺼름 step, pace
- 발길 발낄 footstep, step
- 여권 여꿘 passport
- 열쇠 열ː쐬 key
- 요법 요뻡 therapy
- 잠자리 잠짜리 bed
- 절실하다 절씰하다 to be urgent
- 땅속 땅쏙 underground
- 몰두하다 몰뚜하다 to be absorbed in, to devote oneself to
- 불신 불씬 disbelief, distrust, perfidy, unbelief
- 선수권 선ː수꿘 championship, a title match
- 운동권 운ː동꿘 a student/labor organization
- 호수 호ː쑤 lake
- 단점 단ː쩜 weak point
- 뒷받침하다 뒤ː빧침하다 to support
- 요건 요껀 requirement
- 사적 사쩍 private
- 상대성 상대썽 relativity
- 울음소리 우름쏘리 crying sound
- 젓가락 저까락 chopsticks
- 참되다 참뙤다 to be truthful
- 길가 길까 roadside
- 발가락 발까락 toe
- 하룻밤 하루빰 one night
- 여덟도 여덜또 eight
- 일제히 일쩨히 at once, all together
- 차이점 차이쩜 a point of difference
- 햇볕 해뼏 sunshine, warmth from the sun
- 달성하다 달썽하다 to achieve, attain
- 발자국 발짜국 footprint
- 대권 대ː꿘 great circle, prerogative, royal prerogative, supremacy
- 일관성 일관썽 coherency, consistency, unity
- 생산성 생산썽 productivity
- 인간성 인간썽 human nature
- 화염병 화ː염뼝 molotov cocktail
- 종소리 종쏘리 sound of a bell
- 어젯밤 어제빰 last night
- 중점 중ː쩜 emphasis
- 감수성 감ː수썽 receptivity or susceptibility
- 노골적 노골쩍 explicit, frank
- 술잔 술짠 a glass for alcohol
- 정신과 정신꽈 psychiatry
- 설정 설쩡 setting
- 주권 주꿘 sovereignty
- 채권 채ː꿘 security
- 특수성 특쑤썽 particularity, distinctiveness
- 그럴듯하다 그럴뜨타다 plausible
- 소유권 소ː유꿘 the right of possession, rights of ownership, proprietary rights
- 손길 손낄 an outstretched hand
- 효율성 효ː율썽 efficiency
- 꿈속 꿈쏙 in a dream
- 만점 만쩜 perfect score
- 타당성 타ː당썽 validity
- 달빛 달삗 moonlight
- 뒷산 뒤ː싼 mountain or hill at the back
- 산속 산쏙 the heart of a mountain
- 일손 일ː쏜 work in hand
- 점심시간 점ː심씨간 lunchtime
- 문구 문꾸 phrase
- 불면증 불면쯩 insomnia
- 태권도 태꿘도 taekwondo
- 방바닥 방빠닥 the floor of a room
- 창가 창까 by the window
- 판소리 판쏘리 pansori (a Korean genre of musical storytelling performed by a singer and a drummer)
- 광기 광끼 madness
- 눈가 눈까 the eye rims
- 빗줄기 비쭐기 great streaks of rain
- 아랫배 아래빼 underbelly
- 편법 편뻡 expedient, the easy route or way
- 길거리 길꺼리 street
- 단적 단쩍 frank, straightforward
- 몸집 몸찝 build
- 방사성 방ː사썽 radioactivity
- 손등 손뜽 back of the hand
다른 규칙The other rules
자주 묻는 질문Common questions
Why is 손가락 pronounced 손까락 when there is no ㄱ or ㅂ in front of it?
Because it is a compound — 손 plus 가락 — and Korean compounds often tense the start of their second half. It is not the regular tensing rule, which needs a stop in front of it; it is a property of this particular compound, and 손잡이, built the same way, does not do it.
What is the ㅅ in 숫자 doing?
Marking the tension, not making a sound. It is the 사이시옷, written between the halves of some compounds to record that the second half is tensed. 숫자 is said 수짜 — the ㅅ itself is never pronounced as ㅅ.
Pronunciations, audio and example words from the 국립국어원 한국어기초사전, used under CC BY-SA 2.0 KR.