Internet Chinese, decoded.

"Eternal god" — used to praise someone/something as the best, everlasting legend.

Literal: eternal god

Being passive-aggressive — saying things in a weird, insinuating tone instead of directly.

Literal: yin-yang strange energy (abbreviated)

To get carried away — losing rationality to excitement, anger, alcohol, or a TV drama.

Literal: go to the head

A buzzkill — something that instantly ruins the mood or kills your excitement.

Literal: go down from the head

A zen, whatever-happens attitude — accepting outcomes calmly instead of fighting for them.

Literal: Buddhist-style

Slang for "boyfriend/girlfriend's child" or jokingly for someone's inner circle.

Literal: inside inside

A buzzword describing excessive, unproductive competition where everyone works harder but nobody wins.

Literal: involution

Humble-bragging — complaining in a way that secretly shows off, like "ugh, my villa is so hard to clean."

Literal: Versailles

The most fiercely competitive person in the group — the one who makes everyone else look lazy.

Literal: involution king

A sarcastic "hehe" used to express dismissal, awkwardness, or "I don't care" — NOT friendly laughter online.

Literal: hehe

When a celebrity you idolized has a scandal and your admiration "collapses like a house."

Literal: house collapse

To enthusiastically recommend something — verb or noun, from Amway's famous direct-selling pitches.

Literal: Amway (the brand)

"Really or fake?" — a baby-talk way to ask "is that true?", mocking cutesy influencer speech.

Literal: honest-嘟 or fake-嘟 (cutesy)

Someone who is serious about eating — "a professional eater." Eating is the highlight of their day.

Literal: rice-doer / meal-getter

Self-deprecating term office workers use for themselves — "us wage slaves" — regardless of actual salary.

Literal: laborer / worker

An activity-specific buddy — a gym 搭子, lunch 搭子, travel 搭子. More casual than a friend, more committed than a stranger.

Literal: partner / companion

To completely give up trying and let things go to ruin — stronger and more nihilistic than 躺平.

Literal: put out rotten

To slack off at work — browsing your phone, daydreaming, doing anything except actual work.

Literal: grope fish / catch fish

"I have no words" — amused exasperation at something absurd or ridiculous.

Literal: speechless-zi

Someone who loves attention — a "scene-stealer" who stands out, often endearingly.

Literal: eye-catching bag

Someone who argues for the sake of arguing — a habitual contrarian who nitpicks everything.

Literal: bicker goblin

The pleasure of admitting you were wrong — after swearing you'd never like something, you end up loving it.

Literal: truly fragrant

To be emotionally affected, unable to stay composed. From gaming/combat, metaphorically applied to moments that move som…

Literal: break through defense

Dying of embarrassment in public — a mortifying moment you wish you could vanish from.

Literal: social death

To recommend a product so well that others want to buy it — "planted a desire in your heart."

Literal: plant grass

"Absolutely amazing" or "absolutely terrible" depending on tone — an exaggerated Gen-Z exclamation.

Literal: absolute-absolute (cutesy suffix)

To fail spectacularly in public — a plan, product, or influencer going embarrassingly wrong.

Literal: flip the car

A simp — someone who fawns over a crush who shows no interest, sacrificing dignity for attention.

Literal: lick dog

To opt out of the rat race — doing the bare minimum at work and rejecting the hustle culture. The opposite of 内卷 (involu…

Literal: lie flat

A mock-exorcism chant to make bad luck, annoyances, or negative energy "go away."

Literal: back back back (chant)

Originally a neutral phrase meaning "way ahead of the competition," now often ironic — a meme for over-the-top corporate…

Literal: far ahead / leagues ahead

A "keyboard warrior" — someone bold and righteous online but passive in real life.

Literal: keyboard hero