OMG! Chinese Buzzwords! (12)

隐性涨价(yǐn xìng zhǎng jià)

hidden price hike

Many producers of daily necessities have shrunk the contents of their products while keeping the same retail prices. The price hike is virtually hidden to casual shoppers.

55p

tear point

“55” is an echoic word for sobbing or crying in Chinese. “Point” is the Chinese equivalent of “threshold.” If someone says “poke my 55p,” he or she is quite touched and ready to burst into tears.

美商(měi shāng)

BQ, beauty quotient

The term, similar to competitive quotients IQ and EQ, refers to a person’s concern with his or her personal image, knowledge about aesthetics and even his or her control over voice, manner, etiquette, words and deeds. The self-marketing skill is regarded vital for people to succeed in the service industry.

衣商(yī shāng)

style quotient

The term refers to a person’s style and sense of dress. The style usually depends on a person’s ability to pick the most suitable pieces and match them for himself or herself.

耳朵虫(ér duo chóng)

earworm

This expression is a translation from English which derives from the German term "Ohrwurm" for a portion of a song or other musical material that repeats compulsively within one's mind, known colloquially as "music being stuck in one's head."

一奶两制 (yī nǎi  liǎng zhì)

one milk, two systems

A term coined by Chinese Netizens who were angry after a video clip was posted online showing Yao Tongshan, former chief finance officer of China Mengniu Dairy Company, saying milk products they transported to Hong Kong are “better in quality and safer in standards” than those to mainland. The company later made an official announcement to deny it. The sentence is rewritten from “one country, two systems,” an idea originally proposed by late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping for political practice on the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong.