shūdāizi, (simplified Chinese:
书呆子; traditional Chinese: 書呆子) roughly
equivalent to "bookworm" or, possibly, "nerd". It is used to portray a studious person
as lacking either hands-on experience or social skills. Often used academically to
describe one who is too by the book, and unable to adapt to changing circumstances
that invalidate book theory. Unlike "nerd", shūdāizi is rarely used in the context of
hobbies.
wútóu cāngyíng (無頭蒼蠅) = someone running around with no sense of
direction (lit: "headless fly", or similar to "chicken with its head cut off" in English)
hudu chong (糊涂虫) = absent-minded person, a scatterbrain (lit. "confused
insect"), compare with wútóu cāngyíng
A tigress or 母老虎 (Mǔ lǎohǔ) refers to a fierce woman, usually someone's strict wife.
nǐ shì shénme dōngxi (simplified Chinese: 你是什么东西; traditional Chinese: 你
是什麽東西) = you're less than human, literally: What kind of object are you?
(compares the level of a person to that of an object)
nǐ búshì dōngxi (simplified Chinese: 你不是东西; traditional Chinese: 你不是東
西) = you're less than human (implies less worth than an object)
bùyàoliǎn de dōngxi (simplified Chinese: 不要脸的东西; traditional Chinese: 不
要臉的東西) = you're shameless and less than human (lit.: "you are a thing that has
no shame")
nán rén pó (Chinese: 男人婆) a female who behaves like a male. Tomboy.
huǒyǎn xiéshén (Chinese: 火眼邪神) evil spirit.
dà mó tóu (Chinese: 大魔头) a very wicked and powerful man.
chī bǎo fàn méi shì gàn (吃飽飯沒事干) = same as chī bǎo le chēng de, but the
literal meaning is different (lit. "just finished eating and there's nothing to do")
méiyòng (Chinese: 沒用) = useless
Fèi (Chinese: 废, Chinese: 廢; "(noun) waste/garbage, (verb) to waste, to throw
away") appears in a number of insults:
o wōnang fèi (simplified Chinese: 窝囊废; traditional Chinese: 窩囊廢) =
loser
o fèi wù (simplified Chinese: 废物; traditional Chinese: 廢物)= good for
nothing
o fèirén (simplified Chinese: 废人; traditional Chinese: 廢人) = useless
person
o fèihuà (simplified Chinese: 废话; traditional Chinese: 廢話) = nonsense,
bullshit, useless talk or chit-chat
liúmáng (Chinese: 流氓) = scoundrel, gangster or pervert (the word originally
meant vagrant); often used by women to insult men who act aggressively.
nāozhǒng (simplified Chinese: 孬种; traditional Chinese: 孬種) = coward,
useless, or weak person.
rén zhā (Chinese: 人渣) = Scum. Someone who is useless and unwanted as
garbage.
o wúyòng (simplified Chinese: 无用; traditional Chinese: 無用) = literally
"useless"
o fàntǒng (simplified Chinese: 饭桶; traditional Chinese: 飯桶) = useless
person. Literally "rice bucket", the connotation being that, like a bucket, the person
is only useful for storing food and nothing else.
er bai wu (Chinese: 二百五) = haven't got the full deck
ègùn (惡棍 / 恶棍) = bad guy, bully, villain (lit. "evil stick")
shéngùn (神棍) = fake fortune teller (lit. "god stick")
dǔgùn (賭棍 / 赌棍) = rogue gambler (lit. "gamble stick")
The word guā (瓜; melon or gourd) is also used in insults:
shǎguā (傻瓜; also shǎzi, 傻子) = dummy, fool, idiot. The term was in use as
early as the Yuan Dynasty.
dāiguā (呆瓜; also dāizi, 呆子) = dummy, fool, idiot.
bèndàn (笨蛋) = dummy, fool, idiot (lit. "dumb egg")
chǔn dàn(蠢蛋)= dummy, fool
dǎodàn (倒蛋 / simplified Chinese: 捣蛋; traditional Chinese: 搗蛋) = "to cause
trouble"
gǔndàn (simplified Chinese: 滚蛋; traditional Chinese: 滾蛋) = get out of sight!
huàidàn (simplified Chinese: 坏蛋; traditional Chinese: 壞蛋) = a wicked person.
Literally a bad egg.
hútú dàn (糊涂蛋) = confused/clueless person (a sucker)
qíongguāng dàn (simplified Chinese: 穷光蛋; traditional Chinese: 窮光蛋) = a
poor/penniless person
chě dàn (Chinese: 扯蛋) = nonsense, bullshit, bollocks
Coolie: While some claim that this term has its origins in Hindi, it’s been
argued that it could also have origins in the Chinese term for hard work or
苦力 (kǔlì) which is literally translated as “bitter labor.”
Typhoon: This is probably the most direct loanword. In Chinese,
a hurricane or typhoon is called 台风 (tái fēng).
涅槃 nièpán nirvana
Amen āmen 阿们 Religion
阿摩尼
ammonia āmóníyà Science
亚
amoeba āmǐbā 阿米巴 Science
阿莫西
amoxicillin āmòxīlín Science
林
ampere ānpéi 安培 Science
安非他
amphetamine ānfēitāmìng Science
S命
ampoule ānbù 安瓿 Science
反托拉
antitrust fǎntuōlāsī Business and law
斯
阿斯巴
aspartame āsībātián Food and drink
甜
阿斯匹
Aspirin āsīpílín Science
林
Arts and
Baccarat Bǎijiālè 百家乐
entertainment
bacon péigēn 培根 Food and drink
bagel bèiguǒ 贝果 Food and drink
Arts and
ballet bālěi 芭蕾
entertainment
bandage bēngdài 绷带 Health
Arts and
banjo bānzhuóqín 班卓琴
entertainment
吧/酒
bar bā
吧
Arts and
Baroque bāluókè 巴罗克
entertainment
Arts and
basketball lánqiú 篮球
entertainment
Arts and
bass bèisī 贝司
entertainment
Arts and
bassoon bāsōng 巴松
entertainment
bazooka bāzǔkǎ 巴祖卡 Weapons
beer píjiǔ 啤酒 Food and drink
bikini bǐjīní 比基尼 Clothing
Arts and
bingo bīnguǒ 宾果
entertainment
bit (unit of
bǐtè 比特 Science
information)
blog bókè 博客 Computing
Arts and
blues bùlǔsī 布鲁斯
entertainment
Arts and
bolero bōláiluó 波莱罗
entertainment
布尔乔
bourgeois bù'ěrqiáoyà Politics
亚
brandy báilándì 白兰地 Food and drink
brownie bùlǎngní 布朗尼 Food and drink
bullying bàlíng 霸凌
Arts and
bungee jumping bèngjí 蹦极
entertainment
bus bāshì 巴士 Transportation
bye-bye bàibài 拜拜
caffeine kāfēiyīn 咖啡因 Food and drink
calorie kǎlùlǐ 卡路里 Science
Arts and
cancan kāngkāngwǔ 康康舞
entertainment
cannon jiānóngpào 加农炮 Weapons
carat kèlā 克拉 Science
carbine kǎbīnqiāng 卡宾枪 Weapons
card kăpiàn 卡片
Arts and
carnival jiāniánhuá 嘉年华
entertainment
cartel kǎtè'ěr 卡特尔
Arts and rarely used in
cartoon kǎtōng 卡通
entertainment mainland China
cashmere kāishìmǐ 开士米
celluloid sàilùluò 赛璐珞 Science
Arts and
cha-cha qiàqiàwǔ 恰恰舞
entertainment
Champagne xiāngbīn 香槟 Food and drink
First two loanwords
起司 /
used in Taiwan, last
cheese qǐsī/qishì/zhīshì 奇士 / Food and drink
used in mainland
芝士
China
rarely used in
cherry chēlízi 车厘子 Food and drink
mainland China
chiffon xuěfǎng 雪纺 Food and drink
chocolate qiǎokèlì 巧克力 Food and drink
cider xīdá 西打 Food and drink
cigar xuějiā 雪茄
clone kèlóng 克隆 Science
coca kějiā 可加 Food and drink
cocaine kěkǎyīn 可卡因 Science
cocktail jīwěijiǔ 鸡尾酒 Food and drink
cocoa kěkě 可可 Food and drink
codeine kědàiyīn 可待因 Science
coffee or café kāfēi 咖啡 Food and drink
cookie qǔqí 曲奇 Food and drink
cool kù 酷
拷贝/复
copy kǎobèi
制
couch or sofa shāfā 沙发 Housing
coup d'état kǔdiédǎ 苦迭打 Politics
craton kèlātōng 克拉通
忌廉／淇
cream jìlián, qílín Food and drink
淋
crêpe kělìbǐng 可丽饼 Food and drink
croissant kěsòng 可颂 Food and drink
cumin kūmíng 枯茗 Food and drink
curry gālí 咖喱 Food and drink
cyanide shān'āi 山埃 Science
Dacron díquèliáng 的确良 Science
daddy diēdì 爹地
迪吉里 Arts and
didgeridoo díjílǐdùguǎn
杜管 entertainment
Arts and
disco dísīkě 迪斯科
entertainment
Arts and
domino duōmǐnuò 多米诺
entertainment
drive-thru déláisù 得来速 Food and drink
first loanword used in
einsteinium ài/āi 鑀/锿 Science Taiwan, second used
in mainland China
Eucalyptus yóujiālì 尤加利 Botany
eureka yóulǐkǎ 尤里卡
Arts and
fantasy fàntèxī 范特西
entertainment
fascism fǎxīsī 法西斯 Politics
fillet fēilì 菲力 Food and drink
geek jíkè 极客 Computing
ghetto gédōu 隔都
Arts and
go-kart gāokǎchē 高卡车
entertainment
Arts and
golf gāoěrfū 高尔夫
entertainment
Arts and
guitar jítā 吉他
entertainment
Culture and
Gypsy Jípǔsài 吉普赛
society
hacker hēikè 黑客 Computing
哈利路
hallelujah hālìlùyà Religion
亚
hamburger hànbǎobāo 汉堡包 Food and drink
hello hālóu 哈喽
heroin hǎiluòyīn 海洛因 Narcotics
Culture and
hippie xīpí 嘻皮
society
honey (the term) hāní 哈尼 Slang
hot dog règǒu 热狗 Food and drink translation
歇斯底
hysteria xiēsīdǐlǐ Science
里
ice cream bīngqílín 冰淇淋 Food and drink
jacket jiākè 夹克 Clothing
Arts and
jazz juéshìwǔ 爵士舞
entertainment
Transportation /
Jeep jípǔchē 吉普车
organizations
jitterbug jítèbā 吉特巴
ketamine kètāmìng 克他命 Science
khaki kǎqí 卡其 Clothing
koala kǎolā 考拉 Animals
lace lěisī 蕾丝 Clothing
lacquer làkè 腊克
laser léishè 镭射 Science
latte nátiě 拿铁 Food and drink
lemon níngméng 柠檬 Food and drink
Arts and
limbo língbōwǔ 凌波舞
entertainment
liquor lìkǒujiǔ 利口酒 Food and drink
logic luóji 逻辑 Science
Arts and
lottery lètòu 乐透
entertainment
mankini nánjīní 男基尼 Clothing
Arts and
marathon mǎlāsōng 马拉松
entertainment
margarine màiqílín 麦淇淋 Food and drink
marker mǎkèbǐ 马克笔
rarely used in
massage mǎshājī 马杀鸡
mainland China
Arts and
meme míyīn 迷因
entertainment
microphone màikèfēng 麦克风 Science
milkshake nǎixī 奶昔 Food and drink
Arts and
model mótèr 模特儿
entertainment
modern módēng 摩登
mohair mǎhǎimáo 马海毛
mommy māmi 妈咪
Arts and
montage (film) méngtàiqí 蒙太奇
entertainment
mosaic mǎsàikè 马赛克
Arts and
motif mǔtǐ, mú 母体，模
entertainment
motor mótuō 摩托 Transportation
mousse mùsī 慕斯 Food and drink
莫扎里
mòzālǐlā,
mozzarella 拉，马苏 Food and drink
mǎsūlǐlā
里拉
muffin mǎfēn 玛芬 Food and drink
mug mǎkèbēi 马克杯
mummy mùnǎiyī 木乃伊
Organizations /
Nazi Nàcuì 纳粹
politics
neon níhóng 霓虹
nicotine nígǔdīng 尼古丁
Nylon nílóng 尼龙
ohm ōumǔ 欧姆 Science
奥林匹
Olympics Àolínpǐkè Organizations
克
opium yāpiàn 鸦片 Narcotics
parfait bāfēi 芭菲 Food and drink
派克大
parka pàikè dàyī Clothing
衣
party pàiduì 派对
盘尼西 rarely used in
penicillin pánníxīlín Science
林 mainland China
Pharaoh fǎlǎo 法老
皮卡
pickup truck píkǎ Transportation
(车)
披萨／比
pizza pīsà/bǐsà Food and drink
萨
plutonium bù/bù 鈽/钚 Science
poker pūkè 扑克 Arts and
entertainment
Arts and
polka bō'ěrkǎ 波尔卡
entertainment
pudding bùdīng 布丁 Food and drink
pump bèng 泵
Arts and
punk péngkè 朋克
entertainment
rabbi lābǐ 拉比 Religion
radar léidá 雷达 Science
roller luólā 罗拉
luómànshǐ, 罗曼史，
romance
làngmàn 浪漫
rum lǎngmǔjiu 朗姆酒 Food and drink
Arts and
rumba lúnbā 伦巴
entertainment
沙拉，沙
salad shālà, shalǜ Food and drink
律
salmon sānwényú 三文鱼 Food and drink
salon shālóng 沙龙 Health
sandwich sānmíngzhì 三明治 Food and drink
sardine shādīngyú 沙丁鱼 Food and drink
sauna sāngná 桑拿 Health
萨克斯，
Arts and
saxophone sàkèsī(fēng) 萨克斯
entertainment
风
scooter sùkèdá 速克达 Transportation
shampoo xiāngbō 香波 Health
sherry xuělìjiǔ 雪利酒 Food and drink
shirt T-xù Ｔ恤 Clothing
sirloin shālǎng 沙朗 Food and drink
snooker sīnuòkè 斯诺克
soda sūdá 苏打 Food and drink
士多啤
strawberry shìduōpílí Food and drink
梨
圣代，新
sundae shèngdài, xīndì Food and drink
地
Arts and
ping-pong pīngpāng 乒乓
entertainment
talk show tuōkǒuxiù 脱口秀
Arts and
tango tàngē 探戈
entertainment
tank tǎnkè 坦克 Transportation
tannic acid dānníngsuān 单宁酸
tarot tǎluó 塔罗
Teflon tèfùlóng 特富龙
rarely used in
telephone délǜfēng 德律风
mainland China
ten-pin
Arts and
bowling (or the bǎolíngqiú 保龄球
entertainment
ball)
TOEFL tuōfú 托福
toffee tàifēitáng 太妃糖 Food and drink
tuna tūnnáyú 吞拿鱼 Food and drink
土耳其
turquoise tǔ'ěrqíshí Color
石
valve fá 阀 Mechanics
Vaseline fánshìlín 凡士林 Health
vitamin wéitāmìng 维他命 Food and drink
vodka fútéjiā 伏特加 Food and drink
Arts and
waltz huá'ěrzī 华尔兹
entertainment
watt wǎtè 瓦特 Science
whisky wēishìjì 威士忌 Food and drink
Arts and
yoga yújiā 瑜钾
entertainment
yogurt yōugé 优格 Food and drink
Arts and
yo-yo yōuyōuqiú 悠悠球
entertainment
Culture and
yuppie yǎpíshì 雅皮士
society
Foreign Loanwords in Chinese #1 – Myth 迷思 mísī
迷 mí, among other meanings, can mean ‘to confuse’ or ‘lost’, and 思 sī is
‘thought’, therefore mísī can be literally translated as ‘confused thought’,
The ‘th’ sound in English words such as ‘myth’ usually turn into an ‘s’ sound
in Chinese as it is the closest equivalent.
Foreign Loanwords in Chinese #2 – Talk Show 脱口秀 tuōkou xiù
Popular
Chinese talk show 奇葩说 qipa shuo
The tuōkǒu in tuōkǒu xiù means ‘to blurt out’.
The 秀 xiù is a phonetic translation of the English ‘show’, and is also as a
word on its own.
‘Blurt out show’ is therefore an apt name for a place where celebrity secrets
are accidentally spilled.
Foreign Loanwords in Chinese #3 – Bullying 霸凌 Bàlíng
The character 霸 bà means ‘tyrant’ or ‘to tyrannize’, and 凌 líng means ‘to
insult’ or ‘to bully’.
The characters therefore adequately describe the meaning of ‘bullying’ whilst
also imitating the sound of the English.
Foreign Loanwords in Chinese #4 – Hacker 黑客 Hēikè
The literal translation of hēikè is ‘black visitor’ or ‘black guest’.
Nowadays, the colour black in Chinese represents illegality, so it could be
translated as ‘illegal guest’, a fitting term for someone who illegally accesses
private information online.
The character 黑 hēi can also be used on its own as a verb, ‘to hack’.
That said the main usage for the word 黑 hēi is for the colour black.
ICYMI – Check out all the colors in Chinese.
Foreign Loanwords in Chinese #5 – Calories 卡路里 Kǎlùlǐ
Everyone can talk about getting fatter (变胖) or about losing weight (减肥)
but how many people mention the word “calories“ while doing this?
提拉米苏的卡路里太多，可是我好喜欢吃哦！
Tiramisù contains too many calories, but I love it!
如果你想消耗一些卡路里，那就开始跑步吧！
If you want to burn some calories, just start running.
Foreign Loanwords in Chinese #6 – Blog 博客 Bókè
When you’re learning Chinese you get use to beating around the bush every
time you don’t know the specific word to express what you re thinking.
When students talk about the internet they usually turn everything into “网
站” website, but what if they could learn a super easy (more specific) word?
这个博客很棒！
This blog is amazing! (well it is right!)
这些时尚博客很受欢迎！
These fashion blogs are very popular!
Foreign Loanwords in Chinese #7 – Logic 逻辑 Luójí
When you challenge someone’s view, make sure to express yourself at your
best: be logical!
为什么你说话总是没有逻辑!? Why is there always a lack of logic in your
remarks?!
这句话不合逻辑。This statement is totally illogical.
Why Learn Mandarin? A “Lang-cation” Could be the Investment Your
Career Needs
Why Learn Mandarin? Katherine Tells Us Exactly Why Guest blog klaxon!
We’ve got a great little piece from Katherine who studied at LTL Taiwan.
Katherine talks about taking a “Lang-cation” (a word soon to be in the
Collins Dictionary, we…
Foreign Loanwords in Chinese #8 – Clone 克隆 Kèlóng
Clonation is obviously not among the top 10 most common conversation
topics, but what if Chinese people use the term “Clone” with reference to the
process of stealing data by recording card information etc… ?
You might need it, right?!
Foreign Loanwords in Chinese #9 – Aspirin 阿司匹林 Āsīpīlín
Aspirin! Cause sometimes “drink more water” is not enough…
你应该吃一片阿司匹林，然后睡一觉。
Take some aspirin and get some sleep.
感冒发烧,阿司匹林一包!
Got a cold or fever? Take some aspirin!
Foreign Loanwords in Chinese #10 – Karat 克拉 Kèlā
Wedding in Chinese culture is a MUST!
So of course you will meet a lot of people who are getting married soon.
Wouldn’t it be nice to comment your friend’s engagement ring with the
right words?!
他卖给你 3 克拉钻戒，你怎么能不愿意嫁他呢？
He got you a 3 carat diamond ring, how can you refuse his proposal?!
Foreign Loanwords in Chinese #11 – Vitamin 维他命 Wéitāmìng*
You know Chinese people are obsessed with giving health advice and tips…
get your revenge by suggesting them to take more vitamins!
柳橙和桔子有高度的维他命 C 。
Oranges and tangerines are high in vitamin
Everyday Words
Blog 博客【博客】bókè
Logic 逻辑【邏輯】luójí
Geek 极客【極客】jí kè
Cool 酷【酷】 kù
Sofa 沙发【沙發】shāfā
Card 卡片【卡片】kǎpiàn
Calorie 卡路里【卡路里】kǎlùlǐ
Nobel Prize 诺贝尔奖 【諾貝爾獎】 nuò bèi’ěr jiǎng
The Guinness Book of Records 吉尼斯纪录 【吉尼斯紀錄】jí nísī jìlù
Vitamin 维他命【維他命】wéitāmìng
Model 模特【模特】mótè
Food and Drink
Chocolate 巧克力【巧克力】qiǎokèlì
Hot Dog 热狗【熱狗】règǒu
Hamburger 汉堡【漢堡】hànbǎo
Pizza 披萨【披薩】pīsà
Toast 吐司【吐司】tǔ sī
Coffee 咖啡【咖啡】kāfēi
Cola 可乐【可樂】kělè
Cherry 车厘子 【車厘子】chē lí zi
Lemon 柠檬【檸檬】níngméng
Mango 芒果【芒果】mángguǒ
Famous Names
Marx 马克思【馬克思】mǎkèsī
Disney 迪斯尼【迪斯尼】dísīní
Taylor Swift 泰勒·斯威夫特 【泰勒·斯威夫特 】tàilēi·sī wēifū tè
Donald Trump 唐纳德·特朗普【唐納德·特朗普】 tángnàdé·tè lǎng pǔ
Maslow 马斯洛【馬斯洛】 mǎ sī luò
Johnny Depp 约翰尼·德普【約翰尼·德普】yuēhàn ní·dé pǔ
Brad Pitt 布拉德·皮特【布拉德·皮特】bù lā dé·pítè
David Beckham 大卫·贝克汉姆【大衛·貝克漢姆】 dà wèi·bèikè hàn mǔ
Bill Gates 比尔·盖茨【比爾·蓋茨】bǐ’ěr·gài cí
Usain Bolt 尤塞恩·博尔特【尤塞恩·博爾特】yóu sāi ēn·bó ěr tè
Brands
Macdonalds 麦丹劳【麥丹勞】mài dān láo
Google 谷歌【谷歌】gǔgē
Nike 耐克【耐克】nàikè
Adidas 阿迪达斯【阿迪達斯】ādídásī
Starbucks 星巴克【星巴克】xīngbākè
Samsung 三星电子【三星電子】sānxīng diànzǐ
Prada 普拉达 【普拉達】pǔlādá
Michael Kors 迈克高仕【邁克高仕】màikè gāo shì
Ralph Lauren 拉夫·劳伦【拉夫·勞倫】lāfū·láo lún
Domino’s Pizza 达美乐比萨【達美樂比薩】dáměiyuè bǐsà
Places
London 伦敦【倫敦】lúndūn
New Zealand 新西兰【新西蘭】xīnxīlán
Malaysia 马来西亚【馬來西亞】mǎláixīyà
Scotland 苏格兰【蘇格蘭】sūgélán
Leeds 利兹【利茲】lìzī
Ireland 爱尔兰【愛爾蘭】Ài’ěrlán
Malawi 马拉维【馬拉維】mǎ lā wéi
Brazil 巴西【巴西】bāxī
Bolivia 玻利维亚【玻利維亞】Bōlìwéiyǎ
Canada 加拿大【加拿大】jiānádà
