Dictionary of Hong Kong English, A

Hong Kong English Words Now Used Internationally

217 Hong Kong English Words Now Used Internationally The following English words are from Hong Kong and Chinese English, but are now commonly used in other varieties of English. Most of these words have not been included in the dictionary, since they are in such common use outside of Hong Kong. Those that do have an entry in the dictionary have a different pronunciation in HKE, as in the case of chow mein, or a different spelling, as in the case of fung shui. Some of these words or expressions have a secondary meaning in HKE, such as wonton. Others like Cultural Revolution are from Mainland China, but the word has been transmitted to the world through HKE. acupuncture: a treatment for pain by inserting the tips of needles at specific nerve nodes barefoot doctor: a lay health care worker, especially in revolutionary rural China, providing first aid, basic medical care, midwifery and preventive medicine beggar’s chicken: a chicken dish cooked wrapped in lotus leaves and clay bitter melon: the bitter tasting gourd from a vine of the species Momordica charantia capitalist roader: in Maoist political theory, a communist person or group who wishes to uses capitalist methods to achieve communist goals chase the dragon: smoking opium 218 Hong Kong English Words Now Used Internationally chi: psychic energy chop suey: a meat and vegetable rice-based dish of Cantonese origin chopsticks: tableware consisting of a pair of sticks used to eat food with Confucius: a Chinese philosopher (circa 551–478 BC) (also Confucian; Confucianism) Cultural Revolution: 1 a radical social reform in China initiated by Mao Zedong in 1965 and carried out by the Red Guards resulting in violent purges of intellectuals and socio-economic chaos; 2 a lighthearted description of a major change in fashion or society (a sense which is not socially acceptable in Hong Kong) dead cat bounce: a small, brief recovery in the price of a declining stock. dragon dance: a dance performed by many people with a very long dragon costume egg fu yung: a Cantonese-style farmer’s omelette face (to save/lose): status held in the opinion of others feng shui: a traditional system of esthetics by means of geographic features ginseng: a herb believed by some to have medicinal powers gung-ho: to be very enthusiastic and dedicated I Ching: an ancient Chinese manual of divination ketchup: a thick tomato sauce, originally an Amoy fish sauce kumquat: a small oval citrus fruit with thin sweet rind and very acid pulp or a tree that produces such a fruit kung-fu: a Chinese martial art, with associations in myth and legend la mein: a variety of pulled noodles lemon1 : a yellow oval fruit with acidic flesh and the tree which produces it 219 Hong Kong English Words Now Used Internationally lion dance: a traditional Chinese dance lo pan, also lou pan, luo pan: a Feng Shui compass. Note: Not to be confused with Lo-pan, the patron God of Carpenters loquat: a small yellow subtropical fruit with a large stone lychee: a fruit with a thin rigid skin enclosing a sweet pulp and a single seed mandarin, fruit: a loose-skinned variety of orange Mandarin, language: the dialect spoken in Beijing and the origin of Putonghua mandarin, official: a senior government official of imperial China Middle Kingdom: the country of China money tree: a tree which is reputed to offer good luck, or any tree sold as a money tree Monkey King: Sun Wukong, a character in the classical novel The Journey to the West napa cabbage: a vegetable of the species Brassica rapa subsp. pekinensis paper tiger: in Maoist political theory, a person or organization that appears powerful but is really powerless Peking duck: a type of roasted duck, the best of which are made in Hong Kong, not Beijing pidgin: a form of language used for trade between people without a common language potsticker: a steamed or fried dough wrapped food filled with meat or vegetables Red Guards: in Maoist political thought, young extremecommunist political enforcers running dog: in Maoist political thought, a submissive follower of a different political system Shanghai (v.): illegal forced service on a ship, often by kidnapping a drugged victim sifu: a teacher, often used in Daoism or martial arts 220 Son of Heaven: the emperor of China spring roll: chopped vegetables wrapped in thin dough and fried squeeze: a corrupt payment obtained by...