17 popular Chinese Internet Slang

When learning Chinese as a second language, getting an acquaintance with the internet slang would help you enjoy more fun of study Mandarin. 

As these internet slangs are often used by young netizens, it would be a funnier way of communication or make friends along with the young generation, and it also provides a different point of view to understand the hilarious part of Chinese culture. 

These Chinese internet slangs demonstrated below would show you that besides profound long history and splendid civilization, Chinese is also a nation with a great sense of humor.

bái fù měi 白富美 – fair-skinned and attractive ladies from a decent family

gāo fù shuài 高富帅 – hunky mesmerizing rich men from a decent family

These two slangs are used to complement good looking persons who also behave decently and always in an elegant manner.

For example:

You would see lots of bái fù měi and gāo fù shuài in this sumptuous commercial center.

zài zhè gè fù lì táng huáng de shāng yè zhōng xīn lǐ , nǐ néng kàn dào hěn duō bái fù měi hé gāo fù shuài.

在这个豪华的商业中心里,你能看到很多白富美和高富帅.

bèi tāi 备胎 – back-burner guy/girl

This slang literally means a spare tire, which describes a boy or girl of slight interest who isn't exactly qualified to date at the moment but may come in handy later.

For example:

I don't really like her. She's just my bei tai.

wǒ bù xǐ huān tā, tā zhǐ shì wǒ de bèi tāi.

我不喜欢她,她只是我的备胎

zhè bù kē xué 这不科学 – It doesn't make sense at all or unbelievable

bù kē xué literally means unscientific. This term used to express that you think the content that you're discussing with others is unbelievable or it just doesn't make any sense.

For example:

Don't be ridiculous! zhè bù kē xué！

bié xiā shuō le! zhè bù kē xué！

别瞎说了！这不科学！

guài wǒ lo? 怪我咯？ – Am I the one to blame?

This is a rhetorical question that means I am not the one to blame and should be expressed with an ironic tone.

For example:

A: "The pizza you ordered today tastes not so good."

B: "Am I the one to blame?"

A："nǐ jīn tiān mǎi de pī sà bù tài hǎo chī ."

"你今天买的披萨不太好吃."

B：" guài wǒ lo ？"

"怪我咯？"

lìng rén tóu tū 令人头秃– It drives me getting bald.

It means when you're dealing with something really tricky and it consuming so much of your intelligence and energy, which makes you scratch your head and could lead to the result of severe hair loss even getting bald.

For example:

I have no idea what should I prepare for the test on tomorrow, lìng rén tóu tū.

wǒ wán quán bù zhī dào yào zěn me zhǔn bèi míng tiān de kǎo shì , lìng rén tóu tū .

我完全不知道要怎么准备明天的考试,令人头秃。

gāo dà shàng 高大上 – A thing of high class and good taste

It's often used as a description for complementing the quality or style of stuff or the environment.

For example:

Ruby recommends a fancy café to me, she says "This café is very gāo dà shàng."

lù bǐ xiàng wǒ tuī jiàn le yī jiā hěn bù cuò de kā fēi cān ba , tā shuō " zhè jiā kā fēi cān ba hěn gāo dà shàng ".

露比向我推荐了一家很不错的咖啡餐吧，她说“这家咖啡餐吧很高大上”。

sù liào jiě mèi huā 塑料姐妹情 – toxic/fake sisterhood

This phrase is describing the toxic/fake sisterhood that exists among female friends. They may pretend to be close and nice to each other in front of others, but actually, they compete or dislike each other.

For example:

I despise those who build up to toxic/fake sisterhood with others, for they are not sincere.

wǒ bǐ shì nà xiē hé bié rén jiàn lì sù liào jiě mèi qíng de rén , tā men tài bù zhēn chéng le .

我鄙视那些和别人建立塑料姐妹情的人，她们太不真诚了。

zhā xīn le, lǎo tiě！ 扎心了,老铁！–That makes my heartbroken, my friend.

The original phrase "zhā xīn" should be interpreted as "prick to my heart". "lǎo tiě" literally means "old steel" in Chinese, refers to "good buddies" in the northern Chinese dialect. "lǎo tiě" has soon been used alone nationwide to indicate good friend. This slang means to convey deep-seated sadness after what your good friend said or done. It has been adopted by netizens to satirically vent dissatisfaction with close friends online.

For example:

"My girlfriend prepared a surprise party for my birthday!" said Oliver. Jack responded "I just had a broke up yesterday. zhā xīn le, lǎo tiě."

A："wǒ de nǚ péng yǒu wèi wǒ de shēng rì zhǔn bèi le yī gè jīng xǐ pài duì" 

"我的女朋友为我的生日准备了一个惊喜派对！"

B："wǒ zuó tiān gāng gāng fēn shǒu . zhā xīn le , lǎo tiě ." 

"我昨天刚刚分手.扎心了,老铁."

gà liáo尬聊 – awkward chat or embarrassing conversation

The term "awkward chat" or "embarrassing conversation" refers to having an inevitable conversation with people who lack good communication skills.

For example:

I had a horrible date with George yesterday. We have been Gà Liáo for the whole night.

zuó tiān hé qiáo zhì de yuē huì tài zāo gāo le . wǒ men yī zhěng wǎn dōu zài gà liáo .

昨天和乔治的约会太糟糕了，我们一整晚都在尬聊。

A keyboard man/keyboard warrior 键盘侠 - Armchair critics

This term indicates a person who claims to fight for justice on the internet instead of applying their moral standard in real situations.

For example:

He is just a keyboard man/keyboard warrior, who never actually helps others in reality.

tā jiù shì gè jiàn pán xiá, zài xiàn shí zhōng cóng bù céng zhēn zhèng bāng zhù bié rén.

他就是个键盘侠，在现实中从不曾真正帮助别人。

bǐ xīn比心/笔芯 - Finger Heart Sign

bǐ xīn, form a heart shape by fingers, derives from Korean pop idols as a way to express their love for fans and soon be adopted by Chinese netizens to show their love or support to their friends or families.

For example:

It's so kind of you to help me with my Chinese study. I bǐ xīn to you.

nǐ rén zhēn hǎo, bāng wǒ xué xí zhōng wén. gěi nǐ bǐ xīn.

你人真好，帮我学习中文.给你比心。

wǒ tài nán le!我太难了！- It's so difficult/hard for me!

This is often used when people sign with complaining about the situation or problem they are facing.

For example:

I'm supposed to have a business trip in three different cities within two days. It's so difficult/hard for me!

wǒ liǎng tiān zhī nèi yào dào sān gè bù tóng de dì fāng qù chū chāi, wǒ tài nán le！

我两天之内要到三个不同的地方去出差,我太难了！

yǒu jìn 友尽-Our friendship is ended.

yǒu jìn, is the phrase applied to show a break-up between friends that is to say their friendship is ended now. It is a hilarious way to make fun of the friendship with close friends when you pretend to complain about what's your friends doing or saying is harmful to you but it isn't actually.

For example:

Alex is making fun of my new haircut. Though I agree with him, I still pretend to be angry and replied "yǒu jìn" to him.

ài lì kè sī qǔ xiào wǒ de xīn fà xíng. suī rán wǒ yě rèn wéi rèn tóng tā, dàn wǒ hái shì jiǎ zhuāng shēng qì, bìng xiàng tā shuō "yǒu jìn".

艾利克斯取笑我的新发型.虽然我也认同他，但我还是假装生气,并向他说“友尽”。

níng méng jīng 柠檬精–Green-eyed monster

níng méng jīng, literally means a vinegary lemon; a sour and bitter lemon. It means as same as the sour grapes in English. This slang is applied to describe people who are jealous or unsatisfactory about other's happiness or success. They would even leave mean comments just out of jealousy.

For example:

People try to avoid sharing their happiness with Daisy, for she is a Ning meng jing.

dà jiā dōu jǐn liàng bì miǎn hé dài xī fēn xiǎng zì jǐ de kāi xīn shì , yīn wèi tā shì gè níng méng jīng .

大家都尽量避免和黛西分享自己的开心事，因为她是个柠檬精。

gōng jù rén工具人-errand boy/girl

gōng jù rén is a pejorative term used to call a person who is treated as a helper by someone just for running errands, but also being claimed hypocritically as a friend at the same time.

For example:

Lisa always asks me to run her errands. She said it's because I'm her best friend but actually I think she is just using me as a gōng jù rén.

lì sà zǒng shì ràng wǒ bāng tā zuò yī xiē zá shì . tā shuō zhè shì yīn wèi wǒ shì tā zuì hǎo de péng yǒu , dàn shí jì shàng wǒ rèn wéi tā zhǐ shì bǎ wǒ dàng zuò gōng jù rén .

莉萨总是让我帮她做一些杂事，她说这是因为我是她最好的朋友，但实际上我认为她只是把我当作工具人。

Nǐ Get dào le ma?你get到了吗？– Did you get it?

This slang is a compound one that combined both Chinese and English. "Got it?" is often seen and used in oral English as a short simple way to ask for listeners' feedback. Therefore, young Chinese recreate this question by adding the word "get" into Chinese sentence, which simplifies the Chinese version of the question "Do you understand it?/Did you get it?"

For example:

After explaining the meaning of this slang, Mary asks her friend "Get dào le ma?"

jiě shì wán zhè gè lǐ yǔ de yì sī hòu, mǎ lì wèn tā de péng yǒu " nǐ get dào le ma？".

解释完这个俚语的意思后，玛丽问她的朋友“你get到了吗？"