LEARN + KOREAN / Note 13 TOPIK I
What Day Is It? (무슨 요일이에요?)
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일, 이, 삼 gave you the months. This lesson finishes the calendar: days of the week, full dates, and 언제 (when), the question word that starts half the scheduling conversations you’ll ever have in Korean.
Days of the Week
Every day of the week ends in 요일. Only the first syllable changes.
| Korean | English |
|---|---|
woryoil | Monday |
hwayoil | Tuesday |
suyoil | Wednesday |
mogyoil | Thursday |
geumyoil | Friday |
toyoil | Saturday |
iryoil | Sunday |
jumal | weekend |
pyeongil | weekday |
In Real Life
Those first syllables aren’t random. They’re the same five elements plus sun and moon used across East Asian calendars: 월 (moon), 화 (fire), 수 (water), 목 (wood), 금 (metal/gold), 토 (earth), 일 (sun). Japanese weekday names run on the exact same seven, which is why 월요일 and getsuyōbi both mean “moon day.”
When Is It?
언제 (when) works exactly like the other question words you already know, 뭐, 누구, 어디. Drop it in where the answer goes and everything else stays put.
In Real Life
생일이 언제예요? assumes one calendar, but plenty of Korean families track two: 양력 (the solar calendar most of the world uses) and 음력 (the lunar calendar). Many older Koreans still celebrate their lunar birthday, which shifts against the solar calendar every year, so don’t be surprised if someone gives you a date that “moves.”
Vocabulary
| Korean | English |
|---|---|
oneul | today |
naeil | tomorrow |
eoje | yesterday |
more | the day after tomorrow |
geujeokke | the day before yesterday |
jigeum | now |
eonje | when |
ibeon ju | this week |
iljeong | schedule, plans |
yaksok | appointment, plans with someone |
bappeuda | to be busy |