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In this lesson, you will learn five characters that relate to direction. The characters in this lesson aren’t in the easiest of words, but their simplicity makes them very recognizable for Korean people. This makes it a good lesson to start off Unit 2 with.
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右 = 우 = Right
(Korean name: 오른쪽 우)
It is common to use the Korean word “오른 (쪽)” when talking about the right side of something in Korean. However, in some situations (when driving or walking around a city) the syllable “우” comes up and it is good to know that this means “right”
Common Words using this Character:
좌右 = left and right
좌右하다 = to influence
右회전 = a right turn
右측 = the right side
右측 보행 = walking on the right side (It is common to see this on signs reminding people to walk on the right hand side to avoid collisions with people especially in rush hour in Seoul)
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左 = 좌 = Left
(Korean name: 왼 좌)
Much like the character 右 above (both in appearance and usage).
When drawing this character, I have also seen the second stroke done as the first stroke (and vice-versa)
Common Words using this Character:
左右 = left and right
左右하다 = to influence
左측 보행 = walking on the left side
左회전 = a left turn
左측 = the left side
I talk about the usage of 左 and 右 in this video.
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回 = 회 = Turn/Turn around
(Korean name: 돌 회)
This fits in nicely with the two characters above, and is incredibly easy to recognize/draw to boot! Much like the character depicts, this character is used in words relating to turning, or “going around” some place.
Common Words using this Character:
回전 = a turn
右回전 = a right turn
左回전 = a left turn
回 = an inning in baseball
一回用品 = something that is meant to be used once “disposable”
回數 = a number of times (횟수)
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向 = 향 = Direction
(Korean name: 향할 향)
Common Words using this Character:
向上 = improvement/advancement
向上하다 = to improve/advance
지向하다 = to aim
方向 = direction
向하다 = to face a direction
취向 = a preference
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反 = 반 = Opposite/Reverse
(Korean name: 돌아킬 반 or 돌아올 반)
Common Words using this Character:
反대 = the opposite/reverse
反대方向 = the opposite direction
反대편 = the opposite side
反복하다 = to repeat
反면에 = on the other hand, …
反하다 = to contrast/ be contrary to something
反응 = reaction
反성 = self-reflection
反의어 = antonym
反항 = resistance/defiance
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That’s it for this lesson!
Okay, I got it! Take me to the next lesson!
Click here for a PDF copy of all our Hanja lessons.