Quiz yourself on Chinese queer slang

As anyone who’s spent more than a few minutes cycling through WeChat and Weibo feeds or perusing the comments sections of Chinese websites will know, Mandarin slang is a sprawling, constantly evolving beast that can be crucial to understanding those who use the terms. In few places is the importance of slang more keenly felt than in the veiled communications between LGBT individuals. A need for discretion and a way to subtly identify one another in social situations has resulted in a torrent of terminology becoming not only a feature of mainstream and fringe gay discourse, but also a valuable tool for China’s increasingly visible sexual minorities.

Green tea bitch

‘Green tea bitch’ is a unisex term for a femme fatale of any orientation, so named because green tea looks clean and pure but has a ‘bitter edge’.

Too enthusiastic

Deployed when a gay friend gets a little bit too enthusiastic, usually about a same-sex kiss on Game of Thrones. Roughly equivalent to ‘Oh, she’s off!’

Fem cannon

Literally ‘fem cannon’, a generally affectionate term for a ‘big queen’.

See more slangs on our website