Flirting & rizz in Chinese 撩妹撩汉
liáo mèi liáo hàn
Flirt with in Chinese is 撩 (liáo).
Also searched for as: rizz, flirt, chat up, hitting on someone, flirting with a girl, flirting with a guy.
How to turn on the charm, Chinese style. 15 essential flirting & rizz words in Mandarin Chinese, with pinyin and English. Open it in the app to hear each word, tick off the ones you know and turn them into flashcards.
Flirting in Chinese has its own lively vocabulary. The key verb is 撩 (liáo), "to flirt with or tease", and when you feel a spark with someone you might say you 来电 (lái diàn), literally "the electricity comes on". A crush that makes your heart skip is 心动 (xīn dòng), and that uncertain stage before anyone commits is 暧昧 (ài mèi). Most of these words are informal and playful.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 撩 | liáo | to flirt with; to tease |
| 撩妹 | liáo mèi | to chat up girls |
| 心动 | xīn dòng | to feel your heart skip a beat; to be smitten |
| 暧昧 | ài mèi | ambiguous; in a situationship |
| 有好感 | yǒu hǎo gǎn | to have a soft spot for; to fancy |
| 来电 | lái diàn | to click; to feel a spark |
| 放电 | fàng diàn | to make eyes at someone; to turn on the charm |
| 搭讪 | dā shàn | to strike up a conversation; to chat up |
| 要微信 | yào Wēi xìn | to ask for someone's WeChat |
| 套路 | tào lù | tactic; line; playbook |
| 撩到 | liáo dào | to win over (by flirting) |
| 脸红 | liǎn hóng | to blush |
| 害羞 | hài xiū | shy |
| 主动 | zhǔ dòng | to make the first move; to take the initiative |
| 欲擒故纵 | yù qín gù zòng | to play hard to get |
Usage tips
- Electric metaphors are everywhere: 来电 (lái diàn) is a mutual spark, while 放电 (fàng diàn), "to give off electricity", is when someone makes eyes at you or turns on the charm.
- Asking for someone's contact details almost always means WeChat, so 要微信 (yào Wēi xìn) or 加个微信 (jiā ge Wēi xìn) is the modern equivalent of asking for a number.
- 撩妹 (liáo mèi) is chatting up women and 撩汉 (liáo hàn) chatting up men. Both are jokey internet slang, so avoid them in a serious conversation about a relationship.
Common mistakes
- 暧昧 (ài mèi) isn't a word for "romantic"; it means ambiguous, an undefined, flirty in-between state. To say a moment was romantic, use 浪漫 (làng màn).
- Learners jump straight to 我爱他 (wǒ ài tā) to describe a crush, which sounds far too serious. For early attraction, say 我对他有好感 (wǒ duì tā yǒu hǎo gǎn) or 我有点心动 (wǒ yǒu diǎn xīn dòng).
Mini dialogue
- A昨天聚会上那个男生一直在看你。Zuó tiān jù huì shang nà ge nán shēng yī zhí zài kàn nǐ.That guy at the party yesterday kept looking at you.
- B真的吗？我们聊了很久，感觉挺来电的。Zhēn de ma? Wǒ men liáo le hěn jiǔ, gǎn jué tǐng lái diàn de.Really? We chatted for ages and I felt a bit of a spark.
- A那你对他有好感吗？Nà nǐ duì tā yǒu hǎo gǎn ma?So do you fancy him?
- B有一点。不过他太害羞了，没要我的微信。Yǒu yī diǎn. Bù guò tā tài hài xiū le, méi yào wǒ de Wēi xìn.A little. But he was too shy, he didn't ask for my WeChat.
- A那这次你主动一点吧！Nà zhè cì nǐ zhǔ dòng yī diǎn ba!Then this time, you make the first move!
Example sentences
- 他特别会撩人。He's really good at flirting.
- 他天天在网上学撩妹。He spends all his time online learning how to chat up girls.
- 看到他笑，我心动了。When he smiled, my heart skipped a beat.
- 我们现在关系有点暧昧。Things between us are a bit ambiguous right now.
- 我对他有好感。I kind of fancy him.
- 我们聊了一晚上，感觉很来电。We talked all night and really clicked.
- 她一直在对你放电！She's been making eyes at you the whole time!
- 你敢去跟她搭讪吗？Do you dare go and chat her up?
- 我鼓起勇气去要微信。I plucked up the courage to ask for their WeChat.
- 你这都是套路吧？This is all just a line, isn't it?
- 好吧，我被你撩到了。OK, you got me.
- 他一夸我，我就脸红。I blush whenever he compliments me.
- 他太害羞了，不敢看我。He's too shy to even look at me.
- 这次你要主动一点。This time you need to make the first move.
- 她在跟你玩欲擒故纵。She's playing hard to get with you.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The Flirting & rizz speaking island has 8 everyday questions about flirting & rizz to prepare your own answers to.