50 BTS Words You Should Know Once You Join The ARMY

Aegyo is a Korean word that refers to a "cute" form of speaking or acting that often involves using a higher voice, making cute faces, and using hand gestures. It's pretty commonly used among K-pop idols for fanservice.

Unlike most artists who release individual albums that are conceptually independent from one another, BTS often releases their albums in duologies or trilogies.

HYY: HYYH stands for "Hwa Yang Yeon Hwa," which is the Korean phrase meaning "The Most Beautiful Moment." It refers to BTS' The Most Beautiful Moment in Life album series, which consists of TMBMIL: Pt. 1, TMBMIL: Pt. 2, and TMBMIL: Young Forever.

Love Yourself: BTS’ Love Yourself era refers to their album trilogy consisting of LY: Her, LY: Tear, and LY: Answer.

Map of the Soul: Their Map of the Soul era the albums MotS: Persona, MotS: 7, and MotS: ~ The Journey ~.

American Hustle Life was a 2014 reality series BTS starred in and chronicled their two-week visit to Los Angeles to learn about hip-hop.

ARMY is the name of BTS’ fanbase, and it’s an acronym that stands for Adorable Representative MC for Youth.

“ARMY Bomb” is the name of BTS’ official fandom light stick, which is a battery-powered light designed specifically for BTS and their fans.

Using Big Hit’s official BTS Light Stick app, ARMY Bombs are synced with the live music at BTS’ concerts, and the sticks’ colors change along with the music as ARMY waves them in the air chanting in unison. This creates a multi-colored, pulsing sea of lights and sound that’s epic to experience live.

Bang Si-hyuk, who also goes by the stage names Hitman Bang and Bang PD, founded BTS’ label, HYBE (formerly known as Big Hit Entertainment). He's had a hand in writing, composing, and producing many of your favorite BTS tracks.

While the official HYBE Labels’ YouTube channel houses BTS’ music videos, the BANGTANTV YouTube channel gives a behind-the-scenes look at the boys’ lives with content uploaded nearly every other day, including:

Bangtan Bombs: Short two-to-five-minute videos that document the members doing everything from eating Chipotle and throwing each other surprise birthday parties to BTS simply playing with Snapchat filters.

Episodes: Extended Bangtan Bombs that are usually around 15-30 minutes long and focus on major moments in BTS’ career, like their first time attending the Grammys.

Choreography Videos: Choreography videos show BTS performing their dance routines from beginning to end in one single shot.

Bangtan Logs: Short video blogs where a single member or a couple of members sit down in front of a camera to give an update on how they’re doing at a particular moment.

Livestreams: While BTS primarily livestream on the VLIVE app, they occasionally stream special events like album release press conferences and concerts (like Bang Bang Con) on BANGTANTV.

Bangtan Universe is a fictional universe that’s referenced throughout BTS’ music videos.

The concept of a bias is pretty self-explanatory: Your bias is your favorite member. Many fans also have a "bias-wrecker," or a member they love so much that it makes them question their loyalty to their bias. Sometimes, you might hear someone say their bias is "OT7." That stands for One True 7, meaning they just love all seven members equally and can't choose a favorite.

Big Hit Music, often stylized as bighit by ARMY, is BTS' label and management company under HYBE Corporation.

Bon Voyage is the name of BTS’ reality show chronicling the group’s big vacations. Fans love the series because it shows the members in everyday situations as they learn to navigate visiting various cities and countries around the world.

B-sides are songs on an album that aren’t the lead single. While most of BTS’ b-sides feature the whole group, some of them consist of solo songs and sub-unit tracks.

In Korean, BTS stands for Bangtan Sonyeondan, which translates to "Bulletproof Boy Scouts." But BTS took on another meaning in 2017 when they announced it would also stand for "Beyond the Scene."

BTS In The SOOP is the name of another BTS’ reality series. This one focuses on the group camping in a remote outdoors location.

BTS Island: In The SEOM is the name of the group’s mobile game that centers around the septet being stuck on a deserted island.

BTS World is the name of BTS’ mobile game that lets fans take on the role of the group’s manager and help them achieve their dreams of international fame.

BT21 is BTS' collaboration with the character brand LINE FRIENDS.

A comeback refers to a group's new music release after a period away. Many groups release comeback schedules listing key dates for upcoming teasers and performances.

Cypher is an established term in hip-hop. It’s when a group of rappers freestyle, often going in a circle. BTS has released four cyphers. For each one, BTS' "rap line" — composed of RM, Suga, and J-Hope — spit serious fire. Their last cypher came out in 2016 on their album Wings, and there's no word on when (or if) the next installment will arrive.

Debut refers to the moment a group or idol releases their first single. BTS made their debut in 2013 with “No More Dream.”

At the end of a lot of K-pop performances, a member usually looks directly into the camera and poses. The camera stays on them for a moment before the video ends. That pose is called an ending fairy.

A fancam is a video, often a compilation, of a group or performer’s best moments. While fancams started out as low-quality recordings taken on phones by fans, their popularity led to high-quality videos.

Fan chants are chants sung in unison by fans at concerts. The chants are usually easy and involve repetition, so non-Korean-speaking fans can easily participate. Sometimes, K-pop labels come up with official chants. Other times, they’re created by fans.

A fansite is a website run by fans.

FESTA is the two-week period right before BTS' anniversary on June 13 every year when the group gifts ARMY with new photos, behind-the-scenes dance practice videos, unreleased songs, and more. It ends with a video posted on their anniversary where the members come together for food and drinks to discuss their journey.

Freebies are free goodies you could receive from other fans at K-pop concerts. They’re usually small pieces of fan-made merch, like photocards and stickers.

G.C.F. stands for Golden Closet Films, which are a series of short films and travel vlogs that Jungkook films, directs, and edits all by himself.

Honorific titles to refer to people of older generations or higher status. Here are some honorifics you’ll often hear BTS use:

Hyung: used by men to refer to their older male friends or relatives. It translates to "older brother."

Noona: used by men to refer to a female friend or female sibling who’s older than them.

Sunbae: a term that means "senior" in Korean.

In The SOOP: Friendcation is a spinoff series of BTS’ In The SOOP. This version stars V and his famous friends Park Hyung-sik, Park Seo-joon, Choi Woo-shik, and Peakboy.

Jack In The Box is the name of J-Hope’s debut solo studio album, which features singles like “MORE” and “Arson.”

Each year, BTS attends a number of Korean awards shows. Here are the ones BTS typically makes time on their schedule to attend:

Mnet Asian Music Awards: The Mnet Asian Music Awards — also known as the MAMAs — are one of the biggest Asian music ceremonies of the year because it takes place across a number of days and in different cities like Hong Kong and Seoul.

Melon Music Awards: The Melon Music Awards, or MMAs, is another days-long ceremony. Unlike the MAMAs, it regularly takes place in Seoul. Its venue is usually the Olympic Gymnastics Arena or Gocheok Sky Dome, and winners are chosen through digital sales and online voting. The Melon chart is somewhat similar to that of the Billboard charts.

Golden Disk Awards: The Golden Disk Awards usually take place at the start of the new year. It’s considered the most prestigious awards show in Korea, so think of it like the Grammys. For the past few years, the ceremony has been held in either Seoul or Goyang.

KBS Gayo Daechukje: This is a yearly music show held by the Korean Broadcasting System. You might hear fans calling this the KBS Music Festival because it focuses more on performances than the awards.

SBS Gayo Daejeon: This is an annual television music festival hosted by the Seoul Broadcasting System. Just like the KBS Gayo Daechukje, it’s known for its amazing lineups that bring together the biggest K-Pop acts.

A "line" is a subgroup of members based around one classifying characteristic; however, it is not the same as a sub-unit (more on that later). A line can have as few as two members but often has at least three. Here are a few ARMY should know:

• The rap line is RM, Suga, and J-Hope. They do almost all of the rapping for the group, though Jungkook is a featured rapper on some of BTS’ early tracks.
• The vocal line is Jin, Jimin, V, and Jungkook. They cover most of the singing.
• The dance line is J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jungkook. They’re usually the ones you see in the front during performances.
• The hyung line is Jin, Suga, J-Hope, and RM. They’re the older members of BTS.
• The maknae line is Jimin, V, and Jungkook. They’re the younger members.

Maknae is a Korean term used to refer to the youngest person in a group. BTS' maknae is Jungkook, who was born in 1997. He's also often called the "golden maknae," because he's good at almost everything he tries, including singing, dancing, rapping, video editing, or making everyone fall in love with him.

BTS members regularly release solo mixtapes that allow them to explore their individual musical tastes outside of the group. Here are the mixtapes they’ve dropped so far:

RM: RM’s first mixtape.

Agust D: Suga’s first mixtape.

Hope World: J-Hope’s first mixtape.

Mono: RM’s second mixtape.

D-2: Suga’s second mixtape.

Muster is a military term meaning an assembling of troops. Though the ARMY isn’t an actual army, BTS still uses the term to refer to a series of special annual concerts meant to, well, assemble ARMY in one place.

The members of BTS go by several different names. This includes nicknames for each other, as well as names given to them by their fans.

Agust D: Suga adopted Agust D as an alias for his solo endeavors.

Hobi: Hobi is another nickname for J-Hope. According to fans, “hope” is pronounced more like “hob” in Korean. When you add “I” to address J-Hope, you get Hobi.

Mochi: A mochi is a Japanese rice cake. Within the ARMY, mochi is a popular nickname for Jimin. Fans think his cute, squishy cheeks bear some resemblance to the rice cake. Mochis are also thought of as sweet delicacies, and, well, Jimin's super sweet, too.

Sunshine: J-Hope is known as the “sunshine” of the group because of his infectious, upbeat personality.

Worldwide Handsome: Jin is known as “worldwide handsome” because of his good looks, obviously.

Several members of BTS have pets that any respectable ARMY needs to know about.

Gureum: Jungkook’s pet Maltese is named Gureum.

Jjanggu: The name Jjanggu belonged to Jin’s small, white pup, but he unfortunately passed away in 2017.

Mickey: Mickey is J-Hope’s white and brown Shih Tzu, which he shares with his sister.

Min Holly: Holly is Suga’s pet poodle.

Rapmon: Rapmon is RM’s dog that he named after his previous stage name, Rap Monster.

Tannie: Tannie, or Yeontan, is V's dog, who is adored by both ARMY and BTS.

Photocards, or “PCs,” are special cards that often come in K-pop albums.

The positions in K-pop groups include leader (the member who motivates the group and represents them) and center (the member who’s placed in the middle of the group during promotions), vocal and dance lines (broken down by skill level), and a visual line.

The word “main” denotes a group member’s skill level in a particular line. If a member holds a “main” position, it means they exhibit the most skill and technique of all the members in the line and usually get the most challenging parts. Whereas a “lead” role is a member who has the second-best technique and is given parts that often complement the main members’ parts in a line.

In BTS, here’s how the members’ positions shake out:

• RM is the leader and main rapper.
• Jin is a visual and a vocalist.
• Suga is the lead rapper.
• J-Hope is a main dancer, a rapper, and a vocalist.
• Jimin is a main dancer and the lead vocalist.
• V is a lead dancer, a vocalist, and a visual.
• Jungkook is the main vocalist, a lead dancer, and the center.

If you see “PTD” mentioned anywhere in the BTS fandom, you should know it’s an acronym for the group’s single “Permission to Dance.” The track was featured on BTS’ Butter single album, which dropped in July 2021.

Purple is the official color of BTS and ARMY. So when ARMY or BTS say, "I purple you,” it means "I love you."

Run BTS! is the name of BTS’ variety show that involves the guys participating in various activities in each episode, from cooking and playing tennis to making pottery and visiting an escape room.

A sasaeng, in South Korean culture, is a fan that resorts to stalking, theft, harassment, and other criminal activity to get the attention of a public figure.

Selca is a Korean slang word for "self-camera," and it means exactly that: a selfie!

"Ship" is short for relationship, and the concept has become something of a staple in fandom culture. If you ship two people, it means you love the relationship between them. A ship is denoted by its ship name, which is usually a combination of the two people's names.

While some fans ship celebrities romantically with one another despite the fact they’re not romantically involved, ships can also reference platonic friendships. For example, in BTS, there are believed to be over 21 ship pairings. The fun doesn’t stop there because fans also have ship names for popular trios in the group, like Jinjikook (Jin, Jimin, and Jungkook).

A sub-unit is just a smaller group of members who work on a project together within a larger one. BTS regularly splits into sub-units for songs on their albums. They also break into sub-units for collaborations with artists outside of the group.

VLIVE is a South Korean streaming service that’s used by many K-pop stars, including BTS. Fans can find the group’s livestreams, video logs, and episodes of Run BTS! on the platform.

The Wooga Squad is made up of V, Hyung-sik, Seo-joon, Woo-shik, and Peakboy.

Weverse is an online community for K-pop fans where they keep up with their favorite stars and watch K-pop-related content like series and documentaries.

Weverse Shop (formerly Weply) is the official app for Big Hit artist merchandise and content.