Hangul syllable kass

In a Korean IME, enter ㅋ, ㅏ, then ㅆ.

An IME (input method editor) turns keystrokes into Korean text. On the standard Korean 2-set layout, use z, k, then Shift+t; the IME joins the initial consonant, vowel, and final consonant into 캈.

For software, the equivalent conjoining-jamo sequence is 캈; normalize it to NFC (Unicode’s composed form) if the software leaves it split. In code, \uCE88 is an escape for this precomposed character in languages that support that syntax.

What does 캈 mean?

It is a Hangul syllable; the surrounding Korean word supplies its meaning.

캈 is a precomposed block made from three jamo—letters that combine into syllables: initial ㅋ, vowel ㅏ, and final ㅆ. Their conjoining forms are ᄏ, ᅡ, and ᆻ; Hangul writes each syllable as a compact block rather than a row of separate letters.

Hangul’s first record dates to 1443. The 1446 Hunminjeongeum, a book explaining the new writing system, lays out its purpose and principles; the script was designed so people without training in Chinese characters could write Korean. As of 2026-09-13, no independent slang reading for this exact block was established; by itself, it is best read as a syllable whose word needs context.

Why does 캈 render differently?

A shaping or normalization issue can leave the jamo apart.

Unicode 17.0 notes that support for OpenType features that shape conjoining jamo varies among font and rendering implementations. A decomposed sequence may therefore appear as separate pieces even though it is canonically equivalent to 캈.

Do not substitute ㅋ, ㅏ, and ㅆ for the decomposed Unicode sequence: those are compatibility jamo, while ᄏ, ᅡ, and ᆻ are conjoining forms used for syllable shaping.