The Final-Cluster Environment
A 겹받침 is a syllable-final block with two consonant letters. At the end of a word or before another consonant, standard Korean commonly realizes only one member of the pair. The surviving sound is word-specific, and the next consonant can add a further change.
How to predict
Read the normal spelling.
Locate the final cluster.
Check whether the word ends there or the next sound is a consonant.
Use the known result for that word rather than a single universal formula.
The spelling stays the same. This lesson prepares you to compare vowel-following forms in the next lesson.
Verified Spelling and Sound Table
Read the normal spelling first, then compare the standard sound support. These bracketed forms are pronunciation guides, not alternate spellings.
Word-by-word results
Spelling · Sound · Why
앉다 · [안따] · ㄵ is heard as ㄴ before ㄷ and the following ㄷ is tense.
읽다 · [익따] · In this word ㄺ is heard as ㄱ before ㄷ and the following ㄷ is tense.
없다 · [업따] · ㅄ is heard as ㅂ before ㄷ and the following ㄷ is tense.
삶 · [삼] · At word end ㄻ is realized with ㅁ.
넓다 · [널따] · In this word ㄼ is heard as ㄹ before ㄷ and the following ㄷ is tense.
닭 · [닥] · At word end ㄺ is realized with ㄱ.
The spelling remains 앉다 읽다 없다 삶 넓다 and 닭.
Complete Sentence Practice
Keep the normal spelling in view and listen for the reduced coda in a complete line.
Consonant-following examples
민호는 의자에 앉고 물을 마셔요. 앉고 is commonly heard as [안꼬].
유진은 책을 읽고 메모해요. 읽고 is commonly heard as [일꼬], while 읽다 in the table is [익따]. The word and following consonant matter.
오늘은 시간이 없다. 없다 is commonly heard as [업따].
이 교실은 넓다. 넓다 is commonly heard as [널따].