Chinese slang
Everyday internet slang Chinese people actually use right now.
吃谷chī gǔ
ACG fandom slang for buying, collecting, and displaying character merchandise, especially badges, cards, acrylic stands, and plushies.
Slang松弛感sōngchí gǎn
Effortless, unbothered ease — the aspirational quality of staying calm and unhurried when things go wrong, or of a style that looks beautifully un-forced.
Slang偷感tōu gǎn
The self-conscious urge to do things furtively — working out, job hunting, even existing — as if any observed effort would be embarrassing; 'doing everything like you're stealing'.
Slang淡人dàn rén
A low-reactivity person: emotionally muted, hard to excite, replies 'ok' to everything — the opposite of a 浓人 (nóng rén), an intense, expressive person.
Slang班味bān wèi
The unmistakable aura of a worn-down office worker — dull eyes, wrinkled shirt, gray complexion — that clings to you once you've started working and is famously hard to wash off.
Slang那咋了nà zǎ le
'And? So what?' — a breezy, northeastern-flavored shrug used to deflect judgment or anxiety; the motto of not letting anything get to you.
Slang显眼包xiǎnyǎnbāo
An adorably attention-grabbing person (or thing) — the class clown, the friend who can't help standing out in a funny, endearing way.
Slang摆烂bǎi làn
To deliberately stop trying and let a bad situation get worse — an ostentatious, even cheerful, embrace of failure.
Slang躺平tǎng píng
To opt out of the rat race — rejecting overwork, consumerism and societal pressure by doing the bare minimum.
Slang内卷nèijuǎn
Pointless, escalating internal competition where everyone works harder and harder but nobody actually ends up better off.
Slang搭子dāzi
A low-commitment activity partner — someone you team up with for one specific thing (eating lunch, going to the gym, traveling) without the obligations of a full friendship.