中美国 (zhong1mei3guo2)
Chimerica
According to chaos theory, a single butterfly flapping its wings in the Amazonian jungle may cause a hurricane in Manhattan. In the global economy, this symptom is called "Chimerica," a new portmanteau word that combines "China" and "America," indicating that the two countries share a dependence on one economy, with each side interactive and complementary.
情绪食品 (qing2xu4shi2pin3)
mood food
This is a new trend in the functional food sector. The theory is that diet can affect people's happiness and general wellbeing, affected by the chemical stimulation of neurotransmitters within the brain, resulting in a good mood. Products in this category include "mood-modulating chocolate" produced in the United Kingdom and "pressure-relieving milk" in Japan.
减压经济 (jian3ya1jing1ji4)
pressure-alleviation economy
This term is used to denote an economic sector that involves services that ease the pressure of everyday life, such as karaoke bars, sewing clubs, mood food, spas and weekend farmers.
洋漂族 (yang2piao1zu2)
foreign drifter
As China keeps opening its doors wider to the outside world, more foreigners come to invest, work, study or travel in China. But some wander from one city to another for different jobs and to experience different cultures, and they are called "foreign drifters."
吐槽 (tu4cao2)
debunk, gibe
The expression means to debunk or show up the false nature or ridiculousness of someone's remarks, especially in front of others. The phrase is believed to originate from the Japanese term "tsukkom."
残念 (can2nian4)
letdown, too bad
Young people these days often use this term to express disappointment when they fail to obtain something they desire. It is derived from the Japanese phrase "zan nen."
搭车涨价 (da1che1zhang2jia4)
hitchhike price rise, piggyback price hike
Chinese officials say they will try to prevent some businesses from willfully raising prices of their products that are tangential or totally unrelated to the recent fuel price rise approved by the central government.
裸投(luo3tou2)
unbagged trash
Some residents have begun to dump their trash "naked," as this Chinese term translates literally, after the government banned free plastic bags offered by shops or supermarkets earlier this year. Formerly, many people used old plastic bags as garbage bags.

堰塞湖 (yan1sai4hu2)
quake lake
A lake formed when a river is blocked by rocks from landslides following an earthquake.
次生灾害 (ci4sheng1zai1hai4)
secondary disaster
Disasters or problems that follow or are generated by another disaster, such as a landslide, flash flood or epidemic in the wake of an earthquake.
平安信 (ping2an1xin4)
all-is-well note
Some earthquake survivors tried to send out paper slips from cut-off areas to tell relatives they were still alive and safe.
搜救犬 (sou1jiu4quan3)
rescue dog
Rescue dogs are reportedly more reliable and stable than a life detector for their sharp olfactory sense in finding disaster survivors.
豆腐渣 (dou4fu3zha1)
jerry-built project
In Chinese, the term literally means made of residue left by processing soybean curd. It is an equivalent to °∞jerry-built°± in English. Such projects in China often involve corrupt business people or officials.
道德督察 (dao4de2du1cha2)
moral police
Describes public opinion attacks on real estate tycoons who refused to donate much to the quake zone in Sichuan.
YAWN族 (yawn zu2)
YAWN clan
The initials stand for young and wealthy but normal, a label given to sensible young people who refrain from overspending or driving a car for environmental reasons.
灰水 (hui1shui3)
gray water
Waste water discharged from the washing machine, kitchen and other sources. It can be re-used as it is not so heavily polluted.
藏漂族 (zang4piao1zu2)
Tibet drifter
Unlike Beijing drifters and Shanghai drifters who start careers in the two cities, Tibet drifters tour the autonomous region, then find they can't tear themselves away.
酱油男 (jiang4you2nan2)
soybean sauce man
Taken up by Internet users after a man responded during an interview that he was just out to buy soybean sauce and didn°?t care about the question. °∞I°?m just out for soybean sauce°± has become a euphemism for "it's none of my business."
微博客 (wei1bo2ke4)
Twitter
A service to communicate through the exchange of quick, frequent answers. Users send short messages to mobile phones and groups of Websites instead of one individual.