How to Talk About Temperatures in Korean | Degrees, Celsius, Fahrenheit
- KSJ 쌤
- Jun 6
- 3 min read
안녕하세요 리더님! It’s KoreanStudyJunkie here. In this lesson, we’ll learn how to talk about temperature and weather in Korean, including the use of Celsius (°C) and Fahrenheit (°F) systems.
Temperature Units: Celsius vs. Fahrenheit
In Korea, the Celsius system is used to measure temperature. When talking about temperature in Korean, you will almost always use Celsius (°C).
For reference, if you’re familiar with Fahrenheit (°F), here are some conversion points:
0°C = 32°F (Freezing point of water)
10°C = 50°F
20°C = 68°F
30°C = 86°F (Hot day)
40°C = 104°F (Extremely hot)
화씨 (Fahrenheit) vs. 섭씨 (Celsius)
화씨 (Fahrenheit)
The Fahrenheit scale is primarily used in the United States and a few other countries.
섭씨 (Celsius)
The Celsius scale is used by most countries around the world (including Korea), and it’s based on the freezing point of water at 0°C and the boiling point at 100°C.
In Korea, temperature is usually measured in 섭씨 when talking about weather.
Important Notes:
In Korea, when discussing temperature, 섭씨 (Celsius) is almost always used, and it’s common to refer to temperatures using "도" (degrees).
Example: 10도 = 10°C (Celsius), which is often understood when people mention temperatures, even without explicitly saying "섭씨".
Talking About Temperature
To talk about the temperature in Korean, you can use the structure:
오늘 기온은 [temperature]도입니다.
Today, the temperature is [SINO-number] degrees.
For example:
오늘 기온은 (이십오)25도입니다.
= Today, the temperature is 25°C.)
Alternatively, for Fahrenheit, use "화씨":
오늘 기온은 (찰십칠) 77화씨입니다.
= Today, the temperature is 77°F.
DIALOGUE EXAMPLES:
Example 1: Asking About the Temperature
A: 오늘 날씨 어때요?
(How’s the weather today?)
B: 오늘 기온은 20도예요. 맑고 시원해요.
(The temperature is 20°C today. It’s clear and cool.)
Example 2: Talking About Hot Weather
A: 오늘 날씨 어때요?
(How’s the weather today?)
B: 오늘은 35도예요. 너무 더워요!
(It’s 35°C today. It’s so hot!)
Example 3: Talking About Cold Weather
A: 오늘 날씨 어때요?
(How’s the weather today?)
B: 오늘 기온은 영하 -5도예요. 아주 추워요.
(The temperature is -5°C today. It’s really cold.)
Common Words for Temperature
기온 – Temperature
온도 – Temperature (more technical term)
영하 – Minus (degrees)
덥다 – To be hot
춥다 – To be cold
시원하다 – To be cool (pleasantly cool)
따뜻하다 – To be warm
Example Sentences:
오늘 아침 기온은 10(십)도였습니다.→ This morning's temperature was 10 degrees.
물의 온도가 너무 높아요.→ The water temperature is too high.
기온이 영하 5(오)도까지 떨어졌어요.→ The temperature dropped to minus 5 degrees.
오늘은 정말 덥네요.→ It’s really hot today.
겨울에는 정말 추워요.→ It’s really cold in winter.
에어컨을 켜니까 시원해졌어요.→ It got cool after turning on the air conditioner.
따뜻한 차 한 잔 마시고 싶어요.→ I want to drink a warm cup of tea.
Weather-Related Expressions
Here are some other common weather-related words:
맑다 – To be clear / Sunny
비가 오다 – To rain
눈이 오다 – To snow
구름이 끼다 – To be cloudy
바람 – Wind
습하다 – To be humid
덥다 – To be hot
춥다 – To be cold
시원하다 – To be cool (pleasantly cool)
따뜻하다 – To be warm
Example Sentences:
오늘은 하늘이 아주 맑아요.→ The sky is very clear today.
지금 밖에 비가 와요.→ It's raining outside right now.
겨울에 눈이 자주 와요.→ It often snows in winter.
오늘은 구름이 많이 꼈어요.→ It’s very cloudy today.
바람이 많이 불어요.→ It’s very windy.
여름에는 날씨가 아주 습해요.→ The weather is very humid in summer.
어제보다 오늘이 더 더워요.→ Today is hotter than yesterday.
밖이 너무 추우니까 코트 입으세요.→ It’s very cold outside, so wear a coat.
산속 공기가 정말 시원해요.→ The air in the mountains is really cool.
따뜻한 햇살이 기분 좋네요.→ The warm sunlight feels nice.
That's all for this post! Below I have attached 3 other lessons for you that I think would compliment this lesson nicely.
Check them out if you're interested~
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