What Does Borahae (보라해) Mean? BTS's 'I Purple You' Explained (2026)

If you follow BTS or spend any time in ARMY spaces online, you have almost certainly seen the word borahae (보라해). Members write it to fans, fans write it back, and it appears on banners, lightsticks, and birthday projects all over the world. But what does borahae actually mean, where did it come from, and is it even real Korean? This guide breaks it all down.

The short version: 보라해 means “I purple you,” a phrase invented by BTS member V (Kim Taehyung) that has become shorthand for a very specific kind of love and loyalty between BTS and ARMY. Below we cover the story behind it, how to write and say it, and how to use it yourself. If you like learning Korean through the words you already love, this pairs well with our guides to what daebak means and how to say I love you in Korean.

Quick Answer: What Does Borahae Mean?

보라해 (borahae) means “I purple you.” It combines the Korean word for the color purple with the same casual verb ending used in “I love you.” The idea behind it is trusting and loving someone for a long time. It is not a traditional dictionary word. BTS coined it and their fandom adopted it, so today it works as a warm, fandom-specific way to say “I love you.”

Where Borahae Came From: V and the Color Purple

The word was created by V (Kim Taehyung) at a BTS fan meeting in November 2016. The venue that day was lit up in purple, and V told fans that purple is the last color of the rainbow. He said borahae means to trust and love each other for a long time, the way a rainbow ends in purple. In one sentence he turned a color into a promise, and ARMY embraced it immediately.

Since then, “I purple you” and 보라해 have become two of the most recognizable phrases in all of K-pop. Purple itself has become the unofficial color of the BTS and ARMY relationship.

How to Write and Pronounce Borahae

Borahae is written 보라해 in Hangul, and it is pronounced “bo-ra-hae” (roughly “bo-ra-heh”). It breaks down into two parts:

• 보라 (bora): taken from 보라색 (borasaek), the Korean word for the color purple.
• 해 (hae): the casual present form of 하다 (hada, “to do”). This is the exact same ending you hear in 사랑해 (saranghae, “I love you”).

So the wordplay is simple and clever: take “purple,” attach the “I love you” ending, and you get “I purple you.” That is why the phrase feels like a secret handshake. It only makes full sense once you know the pattern behind 사랑해.

Is Borahae Real Korean?

Yes and no. Every piece of borahae is real Korean: 보라 is a real word, and 해 is a real verb ending. But 보라 is a color, not a verb, so “to purple” is not something a Korean speaker would normally say. Borahae is a neologism, a newly invented word, in the same family as the playful slang Korean speakers create all the time. A Korean grandmother would not understand borahae without context, but almost any young K-pop fan in Korea would recognize it instantly.

How ARMY and BTS Use Borahae

Borahae shows up anywhere BTS and fans express affection. A few common uses:

• Members ending a live stream or message with “보라해” to fans.
• Fans commenting 보라해 or purple heart emojis (💜) under posts.
• Birthday and support projects built around the word and the color purple.
• Captions like “I purple you” on fan art, edits, and banners.

The purple heart emoji 💜 has essentially become the visual shorthand for borahae, which is why you see it everywhere in ARMY spaces.

How to Say Borahae Back (and Related Phrases)

If someone says 보라해 to you, you can simply say “나도 보라해” (nado borahae), meaning “I purple you too.” A few related expressions that go hand in hand with it:

• 사랑해 (saranghae): “I love you” (casual). The phrase borahae is modeled on.
• 나도 (nado): “me too.” Add it in front to reply to almost any feeling.
• 보라색 (borasaek): “the color purple.”
• 아미 (ami): how ARMY is written and pronounced in Korean.

Want more ways to express love in Korean beyond the fandom? Our full guide covers every way to say I love you in Korean, from casual to deeply formal.

Learn Korean Through the Words You Already Love

Borahae is a perfect example of why learning Korean through K-pop works so well. You already care about the words, so they stick. The next step is hearing them in real sentences and using them yourself. That is exactly what Chingu is built for: you take a short lesson, then call a friendly Korean friend and practice speaking, with subtitles when you need them. Understanding one phrase like borahae is the spark. A few weeks of real conversation is how it turns into actual Korean.

Curious about more fandom vocabulary? Read our companion guide on Korean words every K-pop fan should know.