Glossary

noun.
Threesome with two men and one woman.
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[A piān / A pian1]
noun.
“Adult” video/film, pornographic video.
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[bàngzi / bang4 zi]
noun.
An ethnic slur for Korean people.
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[bǎnzhǔ / ban3 zhu3]
noun.
Moderator of an internet discussion forum.
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[bēijù / bei1 ju4]
noun.
“Cups” or “cupware” is a pun for “tragedy”.
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[bǐshì / bi3 shi4]
verb.
Although this is sometimes BS like the English “bullshit,” usually it is used to mean “despise.”
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[biàntài / bian4 tai4]
adjective.
Perverted, deviant, abnormal.
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[bōli / bo1 li]
noun.
On the Chinese internet, “glass” is sometimes slang for “male homosexual” because it is a variant of “BL” which means “boys love”.
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[càiniǎo / cai4 niao3]
noun.
Newbie, n00b, beginner, novice, rookie.
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[cǎnjù / can3 ju4]
noun.
“Dining utensils” (cānjù / can1 ju4) is a pun for “tragedy, disaster, travesty, calamity” (cǎnjù / can3 ju4).
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[cào / cao4]
offensive.
Fuck. Common variants include 草 (“cao”) or 靠 (“kao”) as well as the English spelling “cao” and “kao.” 肏 is also correct for “fuck” but almost never used.
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[cǎonímǎ / cao3 ni2 ma3]
pun/noun/expression/offensive.
An alpaca, or literally “grass mud horse,” which is a pun for 操你妈 cao ni ma, “fuck your mom.” It was created by the Mop BBS in early 2009, maybe in response to government censorship.
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[càonǐmā / cao4 ni3 ma1]
offensive.
Fuck your mother/mom.
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[càonǐmādebī / cao4 ni3 ma1 de bi1]
offensive.
Fuck your mother’s/mom’s cunt. The “屄” could be and usually is any Chinese character with the “bi” sound, especially 逼 or 比. In fact, 屄 is the true character but almost never used.
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noun.
CCAV (China Central Adult Video) is a funny nickname for CCTV (China Central Television).
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[cènà / ce4 na4]
offensive.
Shanghainese, similar to 操 “cao”, but maybe a little less strong.
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[chéngguǎn / cheng2 guan3]
noun.
City management or administrators tasked with enforcing municipal laws, regulations, codes, etc. They have a very poor reputation amongst Chinese people as being corrupt and violent brutes, best known for often physically bullying illegal street vendors, hawkers, and peddlers. See examples.
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[chǔnǚ / chu3 nv3]
noun.
Virgin girl. For boys, it is 处男, chǔnán / chu3 nan2.
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[dǎjiàngyóu / da3 jiang4 you2]
expression.
Get soy sauce. This is a popular internet meme that means “none of my business” or “does not involve me”.
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[dàn dìng / dan4 ding4]
expression.
To be relaxed, calm. It is both a pun for “淡定” [dàn dìng] and the opposite of 蛋疼.
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[dàn téng / dan4 teng2]
expression.
Ball ache. Testicle ache. Usually refers to doing something extremely unreasonable or ridiculous out of boredom or having nothing better to do.
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[dǎo / dao3]
expression.
Fallen over, knocked over.
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[diāo bǎo le / diao1 bao3 le]
expression.
To be amazed, stunned, shocked, surprised, frightened.
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[dǐng / ding3]
verb.
Often used in BBS forums to express support, especially by “pushing a topic/post to the top” of the BBS forum so more people will see it. It is similar to “bump” in English BBS forums. In addition to “support”, it can also be understood as an “upvote” or “like”.
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[dǐngzhe guōgài / ding3 zhe guo1 gai4]
expression.
Literally “raise pot lid”, like a shield against criticisms. Similar to “flamesuit on” or “putting on flamesuit” in English BBS forums, against “flames”.
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[fǎ kè / fa3 ke4]
expression.
A transliteration of the English word “fuck”.
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[fàláng / fa4 lang2]
noun.
Hairdresser, the kind that provides special services. Many “hairdressing” stores in China are actually prostitution houses/brothels.
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[fēijī / fei1 ji1]
noun.
Handjob, masturbation (for males).
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[fēizhǔliú / fei1 zhu3 liu2]
noun.
A person, usually young, who is anti-mainstream/non-mainstream, emo, underground, or alternative. They are usually characterized by their fashion and attitudes about life. A common variant is “FZL.” See examples.
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[fènqīng / fen4 qing1]
noun.
Indignant/angry youth. Often refers to young Chinese who are too patriotic/nationalistic. Sometimes also refers to young Chinese who are critical of the government.
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[fènqīng / fen4 qing1]
noun.
“Shitty youth”, a pun of 愤青.
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[fěnsī / fen3 si1]
noun.
Although it means “vermicelli,” it also means “fans” because it sounds similar. Also seen as only 粉 “fen” or 饭 “fan” (which is actually “rice” or “meal”).
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[fù èrdài / fu4 er4 dai4]
noun.
“Rich second generation” or “second generation rich/wealthy”, the children of wealthy parents.
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[fúyún / fu2 yun2]
noun./expression
An expression made popular in 2010 by “Xiao Yue Yue” writer “Rong Rong”. It suggests that something is like “passing clouds”, a little like something is ephemeral or unimportant/insignificant.
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[gěilì / gei3 li4]
expression.
To give force or power to something, to make something interesting or impressive, awesome, amazing, powerful.
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[gāocháo / gao1 chao2]
noun.
Orgasm, climax, come.
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[gòngchǎndǎng / gong4 chan3 dang3]
noun.
Acronym for Chinese pinyin of “Communist Party”.
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[gēge / ge1 ge]
noun.
Older brother, male friend, guys. Often written as “GG.” Do not confuse with “GG” used in online gaming that means “good game.”
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[gǒurìde / gou3 ri4 de]
noun.
Someone who was dog-fucked or a child of a dog, similar to “bastard.”
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[gǔngǔn / gun3 gun3]
noun.
A cute nickname for “pandas,” because of how young pandas “roll around” when they are playing.
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[guózhū / guo2 zhu1]
noun.
A derogatory pun on 国足 [guózú / guo2 zu2], the Chinese national football/soccer association or team, whose poor performance/behavior often frustrates and embarrasses Chinese football fans.
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[hǎiguī / hai3 gui1]
noun.
A nickname for Chinese people who have studied abroad and have returned to China.
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[hàn / han4]
expression.
“Sweat.” Used to express being embarrassed or dumbfounded, like in Japanese anime.
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[héxiè / he2 xie4]
pun/adjective.
“River crab” is a pun for 和谐 [héxié]， “harmonious。” It is used to avoid possible censorship and to mock the Chinese government’s efforts to promote a “harmonious society.”
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[hěn huáng hěn bàolì / hen3 huang2 hen3 bao4 li4]
expression.
Very yellow (pornographic), very violent. This phrase became popular after a young Chinese girl said it while being interviewed about her impression of the during a CCTV report about government regulation of the internet.
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[hěn shǎ hěn tiānzhēn / hen3 sha3 hen3 tian1 zhen1]
expression.
Very foolish, very naive. This phrase became popular after Hong Kong star Gillian Chung said it during a news conference (to explain and apologize for the pornographic photos of her with Edison Chen that were made public) because it was similar to 很黄,很暴力 [hěn huáng hěn bàolì / hen3 huang2 hen3 bao4 li4].
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[hold zhù / hold zhu4]
verb/expression.
A catch phrase that became popular after a comedy skit on Taiwan variety show 《大学生了没》 featuring a netizen named “Miss Lin” pretending to be a stylist spread on the internet. It means to hold steady, maintain composure, stay strong, stay calm, keep cool.
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[hóuzi / hou2 zi]
noun.
“Monkey” is a nickname for discussion forum moderators.
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[huǒxīngrén / huo3 xing1 ren2]
noun.
Someone from Mars, meaning someone who is out of touch with reality or with current news, events, fashion, trends, culture, etc. 你是火星回来的吗 = did you just come back from Mars?
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[yìng / ying4]
adjective.
Hard. Mostly used by Shanghainese netizens as a substitute for erection.
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[jiào chuáng / jiao4 chuang2]
expression.
To moan, yell, scream, or make noises during sex or as if one were having sex.
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[jiào shòu / jiao4 shou4]
noun.
A pun on the “教授”, jiao4 shou4, “professor”, to refer to educators of questionable moral character who may do more harm than good to their students.
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[jībā / ji1 ba1]
noun/adjective.
Penis, dick, cock. When used as an adjective, it may mean “cocky”, “arrogant”, or a more generalized “fuck” or “damn”.
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[jījī / ji1 ji1]
noun.
Penis, dick, cock.
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[jiāyóu / jia1 you2]
expression.
An expression of encouragement or support similar to “good luck”, “go for it”, “try your best”, “wish you well”, etc. depending on context.
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[jǐngchá / jing3 cha2]
noun.
The police. Similar in usage as ZF = 政府 [zhèngfǔ / zheng4 fu3].
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[jiǒng / jiong3]
emoticon.
A popular Chinese character/pictogram often used on the Chinese-language internet to express being shocked, amused, or stupefied. Possibly originated from Taiwan, and similar to “Orz” which looks like a person kneeling/bowing.
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[jípǐn / ji2 pin3]
noun/adjective.
Something that is high quality, but used online by netizens sarcastically to refer to the extreme opposite, a very annoying or obnoxious person, something that is extremely lousy.
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[jípǐn / ji2 pin3]
noun.
Literally “chrysanthemum” (the flower), but slang for “asshole” or “anus”.
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1. 精液 [jīngyè / jing1 ye4]
noun.
Semen, sperm, ejaculate.
2. 精英 [jīngyīng / jing1 ying1]
noun.
An “elite”, right-winger, opposite of “fenqing”, always critical of China and Chinese, always worships “democracy”, etc.
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1. 恐怖 [kǒngbù / kong3 bu4]
adjective/expression.
Frightening, scary, terrible.
2. 口爆 [kǒubào / kou3 bao4]
noun.
Ejaculating in partner’s mouth during oral sex.
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[kēng diē / keng1 die1]
noun.
Someone who has questionable intentions, to deceive or cheat others.
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[kǒujiāo / kou3 jiao1]
noun.
Oral sex.
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[lánzhōu / lan2 zhou1]
noun.
A variant of 楼主 [lóuzhǔ], commonly used together with 烧饼 [shāobǐng] to form “兰州烧饼”, which means “the original poster is a stupid cunt”.
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[lǎowài / lao3 wai4]
noun.
Foreigner.
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[lǐng dǎo / ling3 dao3]
noun.
The leadership, the government, government officials.
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[léi / lei2]
verb/adjective.
Literally thunder/lightning, used to express shock or being shocked or dumbfounded. For example, “雷倒” [lei2 dao1] means literally to be shocked until fallen over, which is to be completely dumbfounded or rendered speechless or stupefied.
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[lèi / lei4]
expression.
Literally tear or teardrop, used to express sadness, crying.
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[líbɑ / li2 ba]
noun.
Liba BBS discussion forum, famous for having a lot of “materialistic” girls. See examples.
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[Lǐ Gāng / Li3 Gang1]
noun.
A government official (deputy chief of the Baoding City Public Security Bureau) and father of Li Qiming, who in 2010 October hit two girls and killed one of them while driving drunk in Hebei University campus. He proceeded to drive away to drop off his girlfriend but was stopped by witnesses on his way back before leaving campus. When confronted, he challenged witnesses to sue him by saying “我爸是李刚” (“My Dad is Li Gang!”). Li Gang has now become synonymous with being above the law due to government connections.
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[lín shí gōng / lin2 shi2 gong1]
noun.
Temporary worker(s). A common joke in China is that companies and governments often blame their mistakes on nameless “temporary workers” to escape responsibility or embarrassment.
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[lúnjiān / lun2 jian1]
verb.
Gang rape.
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[lóuzhǔ / lou2 zhu3]
noun.
The person who made the first/original post or started a BBS topic. Often written as “LZ.”
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[mābī / ma1 bi1]
noun.
Probably a shorter version of MLGB that also means “mother’s cunt.” Maybe similar to English’s “motherfucker.” The “B” could be any Chinese character with the “bi” sound like 逼 or 比. In fact, 屄 is the true character but almost never used.
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expression.
“Make Love,” to have sex.
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expression.
Mother’s cunt. Similar to “motherfucker” in usage. The “B” could be any Chinese character with the “bi” sound like 逼 or 比. In fact, 屄 is the true character but almost never used.
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[mèimèi / mei4 mei4]
noun.
Little sister, young girl, pretty girl, or a girl’s private part. Often written as “MM,” which usually refers to a young girl or pretty girls. It can also refer to a girl’s vagina, her “little sister.”
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[nǎocán / nao3 can2]
noun.
Mental retardation, mental disability, mental disorder, or a person who is mentally retarded.
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[nèi niú mǎn miàn / nei4 niu2 man3 mian4]
expression.
Means 泪流满面 [lèi liú mǎn miàn / lei4 liu2 man3 mian4], which is “tears flowing all over face”.
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[nǐ niáng de / ni3 niang2 de]
offensive.
Also, 奶奶的 [nǎinai de / nai3 nai de]. Variant of TMD. Damn, damn it, dammit, fuck, fucking.
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[niú / niu2]
adjective.
If not used to mean “cow,” it is is used to describe someone or something as being very 牛屄 = niúbī / niu2 bi1.
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[niúbī / niu2 bi1]
noun/adjective.
When used negatively, it means a very self-important, egotistical, arrogant, cocky person. When used positively, it means a very confident, daring, impressive, amazing person. “Badass” may be a good English equivalent. Often shortened to “NB” or 牛 + any Chinese character with the “bi” sound like 逼 or 比. In fact, 屄 is the true character but almost never used.
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[ǒu / ou3]
pronoun.
This is commonly used online as a substitute for 我 [wǒ, wo3], often by girls, because it sounds “cuter.” It means “I.”
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noun.
Office Lady.
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[pìgu / pi4 gu]
noun.
Butt, ass, buttocks, rear.
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verb/noun.
Original meaning is “player-killing” or “player killer” but it is often used in Chinese internet to mean “competition” or “contest” or “defeating” something.
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[pì mín / pi4 min2]
noun.
Rabble, the lowly people, often used by Chinese netizens to suggest how the government or rich and powerful people view the rest of the country’s people as unimportant.
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verb/noun.
A Photoshopped picture or to Photoshop a picture. See examples.
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[pǔtōng, wényì, èrbī / pu3 tong1, wen2 yi4, er4 bi1]
verb/noun.
Short for “普通青年, 文艺青年, 二逼青年” which translates to “ordinary youth, artistic youth, idiotic youth”, an internet meme that began in the second half of 2011 involving three-panel images initially showing three youths doing something in an ordinary common fashion, in a more artistic/sophisticated/fashionable fashion, and then in a ridiculous/silly fashion. Now, the internet meme applies to all three-panel images that show a subject in the same progression.
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[qiángjiān / qiang2 jian1]
verb.
Rape.
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[rénròusōusuǒ / ren2 rou4 sou1 suo3]
noun./verb.
“Human flesh search” or “human flesh search engine” (人肉搜索引擎) is the Chinese name for when people work together on the internet to find information for a common goal. To “ren rou” (人肉) is a verb. See examples.
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[rì / ri4]
verb./offensive
Fuck.
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[rú tí / ru2 ti2]
verb.
Refer to title/subject.
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[shǎbī / sha3 bi1]
noun/adjective.
Stupid cunt, or describes something as being very stupid. Often shortened to “SB”, “sha bi”, 傻B, 2B (2 = S), or 傻 + any Chinese character with the “bi” sound like 逼 or 比. In fact, 屄 is the true character but almost never used.
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noun.
A “sauna”, usually refers to places where patrons can relax, bathe, get massages, and frequently sexual services.
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[shāfā / sha1 fa1]
noun/adjective.
“Sofa.” LZ is the topic starter or original poster and thus the “owner of the house.” The first person entering the “house” and replying gets the “sofa.” So “sofa” means the first replier/reply. Sometimes written in English as “sofa.”
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[shāng bù qǐ / shang1 bu4 qi3]
expression.
Can’t handle, hurt, or deal with something.
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[shānzhài / shan1 zhai4]
noun/adjective/verb.
Real meaning is “mountain village” but it is now popularly used to mean fake, cheap, copied goods. Used as a verb, it is “to copy” or “to make a poor copy of”. See examples.
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[shāobǐng / shao1 bing3]
noun.
A variant of 傻屄 [shǎbī], commonly used together with 兰州 [lánzhōu] to form “兰州烧饼”, which means “the original poster is a stupid cunt”.
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[shén mǎ / shen2 ma3]
pronoun.
A variant of 什么 [shénme] “what” made popular in 2010 by “Xiao Yue Yue” writer “Rong Rong”.
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[shǒuyín / shou3 yin2]
verb.
Masturbating.
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[shuāngfēi / shuang1 fei1]
noun.
Threesome with two women and one man.
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[tái bā zǐ / tai2 ba1 zi3]
noun.
An ethnic slur for Taiwanese people.
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[tiāncháo / tian1 chao2]
noun.
Heavenly Kingdom or Celestial Kingdom, a common nickname for China or China’s government.
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[tū / tu1]
emoticon
Often used online to represent giving someone the middle finger.
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[tǔfěi / tu3 fei3]
noun.
Bandits. Nickname for male members of the mostly-Shanghainese KDS BBS discussion forum.
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[tūnjīng / tun1 jing1]
verb.
Swallowing semen/ejaculate.
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[tāmāde / ta1 ma1 de]
offensive.
Damn, damn it, dammit, fuck, fucking. Sometimes 他 [tā / ta1], his/her, is replaced with 你 [nǐ / ni3], your, or not used at all, 妈的 or MD.
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[tàotao / tao4 tao]
noun.
Condom.
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[wàidìrén / wai4 di4 ren2]
noun.
An outsider, non-local, someone from another part of the country. Popular versions on the Shanghainese KDS BBS discussion forum include 西部数据人/西数人, Western Digital person, or YP/硬盘人 [yìngpán rén / ying4 pan2 ren2], hard disk person. See posts about waidiren.
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[wēibó / wei1 bo2]
noun.
Short for 微型博客 [wēixíng bókè / wei1 xing2 bo2 ke4], “microblog”. Usually refers to the microblogging services by Sina or Tencent QQ. A microblog is a service similar to Twitter, where updates are limited to a certain number of characters.
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[wěixiè / wei3 xie4]
adjective/verb.
Obscene or to act indecently towards someone.
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[wǒ bà shì Lǐ Gāng / wo3 ba4 shi4 Li3 Gang1]
expression.
“My dad is Li Gang” refers to the 2010 October incident where a drunk young man named Li Qiming was driving his girlfriend back to her university. While driving through Hebei University campus, he hit two young girls who were rollerskating. One of them later died. He continued on to drop off his girlfriend and was only stopped by witnesses later as he tried leaving the campus. When confronted, he challenged witnesses to sue him by saying “我爸是李刚” (“My Dad is Li Gang!”). This phrase is now often used by Chinese netizens to joke that they are impervious or above the law because they have government connections (i.e. relatives who are government officials).
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[wōjū / wo1 ju1]
noun/verb.
Literally “snail home”, means a shabby and often small residence that is far from ideal but what one can afford. As a verb, it means to live in such a living space.
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[wǒ lēi gè qù / wo3 lei1 ge4 qu4]
expression.
Can be said to be a comical or ridiculing insult/criticism, a kind of helpless or resigned “我靠“.
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[wǔ máo dǎng / wu3 mao2 dang3]
noun.
People who are allegedly and secretly paid five mao (50 cents RMB) per post/comment that praises, supports, or defends from criticism/attack the country, government, or Communist Party. Netizens who are very nationalistic are often accused of being part of the “50 cent party” spreading propaganda or “guiding” public opinion.
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[xiànmù jídù hèn / xian4 mu4 ji2 du4 hen4]
expression.
Jealous, envious, and hateful. An expression that became an internet meme in 2010 when written by Chinese producer Zhang Weiping in response to movie critics.
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[xiǎogōng / xiao3 gong1]
noun.
The “top” in a gay relationship, or the partner in a gay relationship that is the more masculine role, who “gives” or who “penetrates”. See also: 小受.
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[xiǎojiě / xiao3 jie3]
noun.
When not referring to a young woman as a “miss”, it refers to girls who provide company or sexual services in exchange for money.
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[xiǎosān / xiao3 san1]
noun.
The third party in a marriage, usually referring to a husband’s mistress. This name may have originally started on Liba.
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[xiǎoshòu / xiao3 shou4]
noun.
The “bottom” in a gay relationship, or the partner in a gay relationship that is the more feminine role, who “receives”, or who is “penetrated”. See also: 小攻.
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[yālí / ya1 li2]
noun.
Often used on the internet as a pun for 压力 [yālì / ya1 li4], which means stress, pressure, burden.
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[yāng shǐ / yang1 shi3]
noun.
A pun on the Chinese abbreviation for CCTV, “央视” [yang1 shi4], which translates “China Central TV” literally to something like “China Central Shit”.
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[yín dàng / yin2 dang4]
adjective.
Lewd, obscene, dirty, perverted.
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[yě zhàn / ye3 zhan4]
noun.
Literally “field operations” but is slang for exhibitionism (having sex in public places where one risks being seen or caught).
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[yǒu mù yǒu / you3 mu4 you3]
expression.
An intentional “misspelling” that became popular in 2011.
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[yūn / yun1]
expression.
Faint, feel dizzy, usually because of surprise, shock, amusement, or disgust.
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[yì yín / yi4 yin2]
verb.
Fantasizing, thinking strangely, pervertedly.
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[zhèngfǔ / zheng4 fu3]
noun.
A common replacement/variant for “government” used by netizens hoping to avoid internet filters, censors, and attention by the government.
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[zhuāng bī / zhuang1 bi1]
verb.
To show off, be a poser, or to act self-righteous, self-important, egotistical. To be a “pretentious cunt”. A popular version on the Shanghainese KDS BBS discussion forum is “IB” or “install B” because “zhuang” means “install” as well as “pretend.” The “B” could be any Chinese character with the “bi” sound like 逼 or 比. It can also be 13 which looks like a capital “B”. In fact, 屄 is the true character but almost never used.
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[zhōngguó / zhong1 guo2]
noune.
China.
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[zìwèi / zi4 wei4]
verb.
To masturbate.
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[zhuānjiā / zhuan1 jia1]
noun.
A pun on 专家, expert, created by Chinese netizens to refer to false experts often used on television or in the news to advance certain agendas rather than the truth.
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[zhuāntóu / zhuan1 tou2]
noun.
Brick, but in internet slang may mean a “criticism”.
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