~째

Welcome to the world of Korean ordinals! The suffix ~째 is your best friend when you need to put things in order. Whether you are talking about the first person in a line or the third day of your vacation, this little suffix does all the heavy lifting.

Think of it as the Korean version of the English '-th' or '-st/nd/rd' endings. It transforms a simple number into a position or a duration. It is incredibly common in daily life, making it an essential building block for any Korean learner.

The suffix ~째 evolved from the Middle Korean period to help speakers designate order. It is deeply rooted in the structure of the Korean language, which often uses specific particles to modify nouns based on their numeric value.

Historically, it has remained quite stable in its usage. Unlike some words that change their meaning over centuries, ~째 has kept its primary function of indicating sequence. It reflects the logical and structured nature of Korean counting systems.

You will use ~째 constantly. It attaches directly to numbers. For native numbers (하나, 둘, 셋), it often combines with the base form (e.g., 첫째, 둘째). For Sino-Korean numbers (일, 이, 삼), it is used to express duration, like 삼 일째 (third day).

It is perfectly acceptable in both casual and formal settings. Whether you are writing a report or chatting with friends, this suffix is always appropriate.

While ~째 is a functional suffix, it appears in many common expressions. 1. 첫째도 건강, 둘째도 건강 (Health is first, health is second). 2. 이틀째 (for two days straight). 3. 몇째 (which order/rank). 4. 세째 (the third child). 5. 열흘째 (the tenth day).

Pronunciation is straightforward: it sounds like a tense 'j' followed by 'ae'. IPA is roughly /tɕɛ/. It does not have plural forms because it is a suffix, not an independent noun.

There is no stress pattern in Korean like in English, so keep your voice flat and clear. It rhymes with words like 개 (dog) or 배 (pear) in terms of the vowel sound.