Chinese Internet Slang: 20 Popular Online Expressions
Number Slang
Chinese internet culture uses numbers as homophones. 520 (wǔ èr líng) sounds like 我爱你 (wǒ ài nǐ, I love you). 666 (liù liù liù) means awesome or impressive (from gaming culture). 88 (bā bā) sounds like "bye-bye." 233 means laughing hard, originating from an emoticon code on a Chinese forum.
Character Abbreviations
yyds — 永远的神 (yǒngyuǎn de shén), meaning "eternal god" or greatest of all time. xswl — 笑死我了 (xiào sǐ wǒ le), laughing to death. awsl — 啊我死了 (a wǒ sǐ le), expressing extreme cuteness overload. These pinyin abbreviations save typing time.
Popular Expressions
内卷 (nèijuǎn) — "involution," describing intense competition for diminishing returns, especially in work and education. 躺平 (tǎng píng) — "lying flat," the counterculture response to 内卷, choosing to opt out of the rat race. 打工人 (dǎgōng rén) — "working person," a self-deprecating term workers use for solidarity.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is internet slang used in real conversation? ▼
Yes, many terms have crossed from online to spoken language, especially among younger speakers. However, they are inappropriate in formal writing or business communication.
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