Key Facts
- Hangul: 보라색; Revised Romanization: borasaek
- Part of speech: noun
- Origin: mixed: 보라 (not Sino-Korean) + Sino-Korean 색 (色, color)
- Register: neutral, standard noun for the color
Purple in Korean: What Does 보라색 Mean?
보라색 means "purple", in the bluish, violet range. It describes clothes, flowers and fruit such as grapes. A light purple is 연보라색, and a soft purple glow, common in poetic or descriptive writing, is 보랏빛. In fashion and design you may also see the loanword 퍼플.
How Do You Pronounce 보라색?
Three syllables, bo-ra-saek. The ㄹ between the vowels is a light tap, close to the tt in American "butter". The vowel of 색 is like the e in "bed", and the final ㄱ is an unreleased k. Before a vowel it links forward: 보라색이에요 is [bo-ra-sae-gi-e-yo].
Example Sentences with 보라색
보라색 우산을 샀어요.
Borasaek usaneul sasseoyo
I bought a purple umbrella.
보라색 describes 우산 (umbrella), and 샀어요 is the past tense of "buy".
그는 보라색 옷을 좋아해요.
Geuneun borasaek oseul joahaeyo
He likes purple clothes.
그는 means "he" as the topic, a form that is more common in writing than in speech. 좋아해요 means "likes".
포도는 보라색이에요.
Podoneun borasaegieyo
Grapes are purple.
포도 is grapes, and 이에요 makes the color the predicate: "are purple".
Common Phrases and Collocations
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 보라색 꽃 | purple flower |
| 보라색 가방 | purple bag |
| 연보라색 | light purple |
| 보랏빛 | purplish glow |
The Mistake to Avoid
Wrong: treating 보라색 and 자주색 as the same color.
Correct: 보라색 is the bluish purple (violet), and 자주색 is a reddish purple, closer to magenta or plum.
보라색 Compared with Similar Words
| Word | Meaning | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| 보라색 | purple | This page's word: bluish purple |
| 자주색 | purplish red | A redder shade, not plain purple |
| 퍼플 | purple (loanword) | Used in fashion and design |
| 보랏빛 | purplish tone | A poetic "purple light" or glow |
Where Does the Word Come From?
보라색 combines 보라 with the Sino-Korean 색 (色, color). 보라 itself is not Sino-Korean; its exact origin is not settled, so it is safest to treat it simply as the Korean name of the color.
In a Shop: Choosing a Purple Bag
A customer has found a bag they like and asks for another color. The assistant offers a lighter shade, so the conversation uses both 보라색 and 연보라색.
Customer
이 가방 보라색도 있어요?
I gabang borasaekdo isseoyo?
Does this bag also come in purple?
Assistant
네, 연보라색이 있어요.
Ne, yeonborasaegi isseoyo.
Yes, we have light purple.
Customer
연보라색 보여 주세요.
Yeonborasaek boyeo juseyo.
Please show me the light purple one.
Assistant
여기 있어요.
Yeogi isseoyo.
Here it is.
보라색도 adds “purple too”, asking about another available color of the same bag. The customer then uses 연보라색 alone because everyone already knows the item is a bag. The omitted noun does not change the color word into a special word for “purple one”. Context supplies the object.
How Do You Put 보라색 into a Sentence?
Before an item, 보라색 works directly as a color description: 보라색 가방 is a purple bag and 보라색 꽃 is a purple flower. You do not need to add 의, the possessive marker, between the color and the item. These phrases describe a bag or flower by color, rather than saying that purple owns it.
At the end of a polite sentence, use 보라색이에요, “is purple”. The 이에요 ending follows because 색 ends in a consonant. The existing grape example uses this pattern. For “is not purple”, 보라색이 아니에요 keeps 이 before 아니에요. Both patterns identify or reject a color.
보라색으로 means “in purple” when choosing a color or describing a change to that color. With a painting or dyeing verb, 으로 marks the result or choice. This differs from 보라색을 좋아해요, “I like purple”, where 을 marks the color as the thing being liked.
Which Purple Expressions Describe a Shade or a Mood?
연보라색 is light purple, written as one word. 연한 보라색 also describes a light or pale purple, this time using a separate describing word. 진한 보라색 means a deep or strong purple. These phrases help when plain “purple” is too broad to identify the shade you want.
보랏빛 combines the color with 빛, “light” or “color”. Its written ㅅ is part of the word, so keep the spelling 보랏빛. A phrase such as 보랏빛 하늘 describes a purple-hued sky. The word can describe an actual color as well as a poetic impression; it does not require a lamp or literal beam of purple light.
보라색 가방 is the straightforward phrase when identifying a bag on a shelf. 보랏빛 is more evocative in descriptions of scenery or atmosphere. Both can refer to purple, but they give the sentence a different style.
Where Will You See 보라, 보라색 and 퍼플?
In online shopping, color options may shorten 보라색 to 보라. A drop-down list already tells you these are colors, so the full 색 ending is unnecessary there. 퍼플 can appear in product names and fashion descriptions. It is a loanword for purple, rather than a guarantee of a particular shade.
A color name alone cannot specify an exact paint or fabric match. 보라색 and 자주색 help separate a bluer purple from a redder one, but products within either group can still vary. When matching two items, use the photograph, sample or product code alongside the name.
Nearby Color Words
| Korean | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 색 | color | The color word inside 보라색. |
| 연보라색 | light purple | A ready-made name for a paler shade. |
| 파란색 | blue | Useful when describing a purple that leans blue. |
| 분홍색 | pink | Helps distinguish pale purple from pink. |
The color vocabulary lesson teaches the wider set for describing clothes, flowers and objects.
Quick Self-Test
- Which is the ordinary phrase for “purple bag”: 보라색 가방 or 보라색의 가방?
- Which means light purple: 연보라색 or 자주색?
- Does 퍼플 on a product page identify an exact standardized shade?
Show answers
- 보라색 가방.
- 연보라색. 자주색 is reddish purple.
- No. It is the loanword “purple”; check the sample or product information.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you say "purple" in Korean?
Say 보라색 (borasaek).
How do you say "light purple"?
Say 연보라색.
What is 보랏빛?
A purplish glow or tone, used in descriptive and poetic language.
Is 자주색 the same as purple?
No. 자주색 is a more reddish purple. Plain purple is 보라색.
Related Words and What to Learn Next
- Theme list: color vocabulary groups 보라색 with the other colors.
- Index: Korean words A to Z.
- Read next: red in Korean.