The Chinese term 碰瓷 pèngcí – literally “to bump into porcelain” (瓷 cí means “porcelain” and 碰 pèng “to touch, to bump into, to bounce against” or “to meet, to hit”) proves that shards of glass do not always bring good luck after all. In reality, this popular word in Chinese internet and colloquial language […]
When do you have the most stable balance? That’s right when you’re lying down. Might this also apply to work-life balance? In China, at any rate, lying flat (躺平tǎngpíng, from 躺tǎng = “to lie down” and 平píng “flat”) is currently trending as a social media buzzword. It can be understood as a kind of silent […]
“Those are Chinese cabbage prices!” you might shout for a change the next time you flip through the advertising leaflet of your local discount store. The term 白菜价 báicàijià (白菜 báicài “Chinese cabbage” and 价 jià from 价格 jiàgé “price”) is the friendly Chinese version of “underprice” or “knockdown price”.The word has its roots in […]
“I just gotta have that!” Anyone who has ever had experienced this thought probably had a bee in their bonnet, or rather, a “grape” in their bonnet (种草 zhòngcǎo). This is “New Chinese” for when products are made so palatable to someone by recommendation that a desire to purchase sprouts. By satisfying this need, one […]
Not much going on in the office? Blind zoom angle in the home office? Time to pat fish! Because 摸鱼 mōyú (“pat/petting/grabbing fish”) is the trendy Chinese language equivalent for lazing around at work. The internet word is derived from the old idiom 浑水摸鱼 húnshuǐ-mōyú or 混水摸鱼 hùnshuǐ-mōyú, literally “to grab fish in murky water”. […]
Exhausted and worn out? Stomach upset? Migraine attack? Catching a cold? Home office hangover? Or just all too much? Drink more warm water! At least that’s what you’ll be advised to do in China whenever the subject of minor aches and pains and sudden physical discomfort comes up. Warm or boiled water – in Chinese […]
In China, the color green doesn’t always get you off on the right foot. Newcomers to China, for example, who show up in the Middle Kingdom with green headgear and possibly get one or two stupid comments for it, are likely to be annoyed. Of course, China insiders can only smile wearily. It has long […]
Were you “hooed” as a child? Or are you perhaps “hening” your own offspring right now? If you are now standing like a chicken in front of a mountain in terms of understanding, don’t worry! You are no different than most Chinese who hear the term 鸡娃 jīwá – literally “to hen children ” – […]
Some facial expressions say more than a thousand words. A smile creates a good mood and positive reactions in East and West alike. But what does it look like when facial expressions are transferred to the digital world in the form of emoticons or emojis? Whether it’s WhatsApp or WeChat, Europeans and Chinese alike enjoy […]
Watch out, character bullets cross! At least on Chinese video platforms. Here, it is not uncommon for viewers’ comments to fly across the screen as “line projectiles“. Dànmù 弹幕 is the name of this interactive phenomenon – a neologism made up of 弹 dàn “projectile” and 幕 mù as in 字幕 zìmù “subtitle” or 屏幕 […]