断背 duànbèi (dwun bay)
Literally “brokeback,” after Ang Lee’s movie Brokeback Mountain. A euphemism for homosexuality.
Duàn bèi
玻璃 bōlí (bwuh lee)
A euphemism for “gay.” Literally “crystal” or “glass.” Not often used in speech, but known by most gay Chinese people. It comes from the seminal 1980 novel Crystal Boys, by the gay Taiwanese writer Pai Hsien-Yung. The novel’s mention of “crystal boys” is itself a reference to a passage from the classic work Dream of the Red Chamber.
拉拉 lālā (lah lah) or 拉子 lāzi (lah dz)
The most commonly used word for “lesbian.” Lāzi is used in Taiwan and was coined (based on the sound of the English “lesbian” or “lez”) by a lesbian Taiwanese writer named 邱妙津 Qiu Miaojin (chyoe myow gene). When the term spread to the mainland it became lālā instead.
T & P
Terms for lesbian roles. The T stands for “tomboy” and the P refers to 老婆 lǎopó (laow pwuh), or “wife” in Chinese. The terms are equivalent to “butch” and “femme” in English.
娘 T niáng T (nyahng T)
Girly T, soft butch. A lesbian who identifies asaTbut is still a bit feminine or girly.
爷 P yé P (yeh P)
Grandfather P. A lesbian who identifies as a P but is a bit manly.
不分 bù fēn (boo fen)
Literally “don’t differentiate.” Means that you don’t particularly identify as a T or P, and that you also have no preference in terms of which type you’re into.
帅 T 美 P shuài T měi P (shwhy T may P)
帅 T Shuài T (shwhy T) means “handsome tomboy(s)” and 美 P měi P (may P) is “pretty wife” or “pretty wives.” You might use them together to say something like “This club is full of handsome tomboys and pretty wives tonight!”
TT 恋 TT liàn (TT lyinn)
Tomboy-tomboy love, when two tomboys date.
T 吧 T ba (T bah)
A lesbian bar just for tomboys. Since most Chinese lesbians believe that a T and a P should date each other, the exact reason for the existence of a tomboy-only bar is somewhat mystifying.
自梳女 zì shū nǚ (dz shoe nee)
Comb sisters (literally “a woman who combs her hair by herself”). Referring to a group of women in Guangdong and other parts of southern China during the late 1800s and early 1900s who vowed to resist the oppressions of the Confucian conception of marriage. While zì shū nǚ were not necessarily all lesbians, they are perceived in popular culture as some sort of lesbian cult and have also been embraced as such by the Chinese lesbian community.
主动 zhǔdòng (joo dohng)
Top, giver, pitcher, husband. Literally “active.”
被动 bèidòng (bay dohng)
Bottom, taker, catcher, wife. Literally “passive.”
1 号 yī hào (ee how) or just 1 yī (ee)
Literally “number one” or just “one.” Means “top,” “pitcher,” or “husband” because the number one looks like a penis.
0 号 líng hào (ling how) or just 0 líng (ling)
Literally “number zero” or just “zero.” Means “bottom,” “catcher,” or “wife” because a “one” can be inserted into a
“zero.” You might hear two guys flirting at a bar ask, “你是 1 还是 0?” “Nǐ shì yī hái shì ling?”: “Are you a one or a zero?”
0.5 líng diǎn wǔ (ling dyinn oo)
Either, versatile. That is, you can be either the 1 or the 0. You can also indicate that you’re a 0.5 by saying 全能 quán néng (chren nung), which means “all can”; that is, “can do all.”
Rice queen
A gay guy who prefers Asian men (this would simply be said in English, as there is no translation in Chinese).
Potato queen
A gay guy who prefers white men (this would simply be said in English, as there is no translation in Chinese).
MB
For “money boy” (and said in English). A (usually young) man who takes money for sex with other men.
T 少 T shào (T shaow)
A woman who takes money for sex with other women.
哥哥 gēge (guh guh)
A manly gay man. Literally “older brother.” Can also imply sugar daddy.
弟弟 dìdi (dee dee)
A girly, or effeminate, gay man. Literally “younger brother.” Can also imply a person being supported by a sugar daddy.
熊 xióng (shyohng)
Literally “bear.” Taken directly from the English slang for a gay man with a bigger, slightly chubby build.
人妖 rényāo (ren yow)
Lady-boy.
反串 fǎnchuàn (fahn chwun)
Drag queen (applies both to men who dress up as women and to women who dress up as men in performances).
CC or just C
Queen (and said in English). Used because CC sounds like “sissy” to Chinese ears. Many Chinese gays also just say
“sissy” in English for a queen or a feminine guy.
鞋号 xié hào (shyih how)
Literally “shoe size.” Used online to imply penis size.
炮友 pàoyǒu (pow yo)
Fuck buddy. 炮 Pào (pow) means “cannon” and is a euphemism for ejaculation, while 友 yǒu (yo) means friends.
Gay 吧 “Gay” ba (gay bah)
Gay café.
公司 gōngsī (gohng sih)
Taiwan slang for a park where gay men gather and meet. Literally “company” but shares the same initial syllable with “park,” which is 公园 gōngyuán (gohng yren). One particularly well-known “company” is the 2/28 Peace Memorial Park in Taipei.
双性恋 shuāngxìngliàn (shwahng sheeng lyinn)
Bisexuality. Literally “love for both sexes.”
阴阳人 yīnyáng rén (een yahng ren)
Transsexual or hermaphrodite. Literally “yin-yang person.” May also be used insultingly to refer to an extremely manly woman or to an extremely effeminate man.
同仁女 tóngrén nǚ (tohng ren nee)
Fag hag. 同仁 Tóng rén (tohng ren) means “colleagues,” but 同 tóng (tohng) also alludes to gay men, while 女 nǚ (nee) means “woman,” so the overall suggestion is a woman who has close associations with gay men.
同志牛皮糖 tóngzhì niúpí tang (tohng jih nyoo pee tahng)
Fag hag. Literally “gay leather-candy.” 同志 Tóngzhì (tohng jih) means “gay,” and 牛皮糖 niúpí tang (nyoo pee tahng) is a type of sticky candy, thus suggesting sticking to gay guys.
出柜 chū guì (choo gway)
Come out of the closet.
异性恋 yìxìngliàn (ee sheeng lyinn)
Heterosexuality. Literally “love for the opposite sex.”