2013中国网络流行词（中英对照）

1. Nouveau riche (Chinese: 土豪; pinyin: tu hao)

The tuhao originally meant a rich and powerful person or family in a certain town or area, with a negative connotation in Chinese. Nowadays, it has become a general term used by people to describe those who live beyond their means.

2. Big mama (Chinese:大妈; pinyin: da ma)

The term “dama” is literally akin to “big mama” in Chinese, referring to those “bargain hunting” middle-aged Chinese women who keep a tight grip on the family purse and an eagle eye on the gold prices in jewelry shops.

3. My little friends and I are shocked (Chinese: 我伙呆; pinyin: wo huo dai)

The Chinese term is short for a sentence literally meaning “My little friends and I are shocked.” Its actual roots lie in an article written by a pupil. The school student said his little friends and he were shocked after finding out where the Chinese rice dumpling (pinyin: zongzi) originated from. Since then, the sentence is extensively used to describe people’s shock after discovering a new or hot fact.

4. Female man (Chinese: 女汉子; pinyin: nü han zi)

The term refers to a boyish girl or a woman with masculine (physical) characteristics. In August 2013, one Russian beauty’s photos gained great popularity online. The woman has a very pretty face and an extremely muscular physique. Since then, the term has become broadly used to describe women with masculine features.

5. High-end (Chinese: 高大上; pinyin: gao da shang)

The term was originally used to describe a person or a thing of good taste and high level. Nowadays, it mostly has a mocking or ironic demeanor to it.

6. Open-air fitness dancing (Chinese: 广场舞; pinyin: guang chang wu)

Open-air fitness dancing, also known as Chinese fitness, is a form of spontaneous communal dancing which occurs in public parks or squares to keep fit. The dancing is easy to learn and has become an essential part of a trendy lifestyle. Statistics show that more than 100 million people all over China enjoy this form of fitness, the majority of whom are women aged between 45 and 65.

7. Though don’t quite get it; they think it’s terrific (Chinese: 不明觉厉; pinyin: bu ming jue li)

The Chinese term is short for a sentence which means “I don’t quite get it, but I think you are really terrific.” It literally refers to a newbie’s adoration for a master-hand and now extends to the meaning of having no idea of what the other one just said, though it sounds specific and profound.

8. Being deeply moved, but still reject a person (Chinese: 十动然拒; pinyin: shi dong ran ju)

A senior college boy spent 212 days finishing a 160,000-word-long love letter and then got up the courage to express his feelings to the object of his affection on Nov. 11, 2012. Nevertheless, the girl turned him down. The sad story became rather comical when netizens caught wind of it and gave it an ending which read, “She was deeply moved, but still rejected him.” To simplify the sentence, netizens used a four-word phrase “shidong ranju.” After that, the term acquired great online popularity in 2013.

9. Too tired to love (Chinese: 累觉不爱, pinyin: lei jue bu ai)

This Chinese four-word term is short for an expression meaning “being too tired to love.” The year 2013 saw many period dramas appear on Chinese TV screens and some of them were very long and very complicated. Audiences loved them at the beginning, but then became too confused and tired to keep up with, let alone follow, the plot. This term described viewers’ feelings towards those TV shows. The term also refers to one’s fading love for another.

10. Life is so hard. Don’t hurt me with the truth. (Chinese: 人艰不拆; pinyin: ren jian bu chai)

The term stands for the phrase “Life is so hard. Don’t hurt me with the truth.” This sentence originally comes from Taiwan singer Yoga Lin Youjia’s song “Lie.” Now it is used to describe one’s inability to face a hard truth.