hyung

Hyung is Korean for “older brother,” used by boys and men. In K-pop it also means the older members of a boy group.

What hyung means

In Korean, hyung (형, also spelled hyeong) is how a male speaker addresses an older brother, and Wiktionary notes it’s used affectionately for any somewhat older man. It’s respect and closeness at once, a bit like calling someone “big bro.”

In K-pop fandom, the older members of a boy group are “the hyungs,” and the older half of a group is the “hyung line,” as opposed to the maknae line. Fans watching variety shows hear younger members call out “hyung!” constantly.

Examples

• “The hyung line carried the dance break.”
• “Hyung, can I borrow your jacket?”
• “He’s the youngest, so he calls everyone in the group hyung.”

Hyung vs. oppa

Both mean older brother. The difference is who’s speaking: men say hyung, women say oppa. Wikipedia’s article on Korean honorifics explains that these words depend on whether the other person was born before you, and they aren’t limited to actual family.

Where it came from

It’s a borrowing of Korean 형, which comes from the Chinese character 兄 (elder brother). English speakers picked it up mostly through K-pop and K-dramas.

Related terms

• Oppa: older brother, said by a woman.
• Noona: older sister, said by a man.
• Dongsaeng: a younger sibling or friend.
• Maknae: the youngest member.

See more terms like this in our K-pop slang guide.