Pick-up lines & cheesy lines in Chinese 土味情话
tǔ wèi qínghuà
Cheesy pick-up lines in Chinese is 土味情话 (tǔ wèi qíng huà).
Also searched for as: chat-up lines, cheesy pick-up lines, corny love lines, Chinese pick up lines, sweet talk.
So cheesy they just might work. 15 essential pick-up lines & cheesy lines 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.
Chinese pick-up lines are known as 土味情话 (tǔ wèi qíng huà), literally "rustic-flavoured love talk", and they're meant to be groan-worthy. Most work as puns: ask someone 你属什么 (nǐ shǔ shén me), "what's your zodiac animal?", and answer 我属于你 (wǒ shǔ yú nǐ), "I belong to you". The best response is to laugh, call it 油腻 (yóu nì), or 接梗 (jiē gěng) and play along.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 土味情话 | tǔ wèi qíng huà | cheesy pick-up lines |
| 情话 | qíng huà | sweet nothings; words of love |
| 油腻 | yóu nì | greasy; cringey (trying too hard) |
| 肉麻 | ròu má | soppy; sickly sweet |
| 接梗 | jiē gěng | to play along with a joke |
| 你累不累啊 | nǐ lèi bu lèi a | aren't you tired? |
| 缺点你 | quē diǎn nǐ | lacking you (pun on 缺点 "flaw") |
| 死心塌地 | sǐ xīn tā dì | utterly devoted |
| 理想型 | lǐ xiǎng xíng | ideal type |
| 点燃我的心 | diǎn rán wǒ de xīn | to set my heart on fire |
| 怪好看的 | guài hǎo kàn de | oddly good-looking (pun) |
| 除了你还是你 | chú le nǐ hái shì nǐ | nobody but you (division pun) |
| 你在我心里 | nǐ zài wǒ xīn li | you're in my heart |
| 忘加糖了 | wàng jiā táng le | forgot the sugar |
| 属于你 | shǔ yú nǐ | to belong to you (pun on 属 "born in the year of") |
Usage tips
- Nearly every line is a set-up and punchline, so it only lands if the other person asks the question back. That's why a good line needs someone willing to 接梗 (jiē gěng).
- Many lines depend on a word splitting in two: 缺点 (quē diǎn) means "flaw", but 缺点你 (quē diǎn nǐ) is "lacking a little bit of you". Hearing how the syllables regroup is half the fun.
- To tease someone for a line, 好土 (hǎo tǔ), "so cheesy", is gentle, 肉麻 (ròu má) means "soppy", and 油腻 (yóu nì) suggests they're trying too hard, which stings a bit more.
Common mistakes
- 属 (shǔ) asks about the Chinese zodiac animal, not a star sign. 你属什么 (nǐ shǔ shén me) means "which zodiac animal were you born under?", while a Western star sign is 星座 (xīng zuò).
- 情话 (qíng huà) isn't a love letter; it's spoken sweet talk. A love letter is 情书 (qíng shū).
Mini dialogue
- A我给你讲一句土味情话吧。Wǒ gěi nǐ jiǎng yī jù tǔ wèi qíng huà ba.Let me tell you a cheesy pick-up line.
- B好啊，你说。Hǎo a, nǐ shuō.Go on then.
- A你知道我的缺点是什么吗？Nǐ zhī dào wǒ de quē diǎn shì shén me ma?Do you know what my flaw is?
- B是什么？Shì shén me?What is it?
- A缺点你。Quē diǎn nǐ.A lack of you.
- B哈哈，太油腻了！不过我接梗了。Hā hā, tài yóu nì le! Bù guò wǒ jiē gěng le.Haha, that's so cringey! But fine, I played along.
Example sentences
- 他每天给我发土味情话。He sends me cheesy lines every day.
- 别光说情话，来点实际的。Enough sweet talk, show me something real.
- 这句话太油腻了吧！That line is way too cringey!
- 你说得太肉麻了！That's way too soppy!
- 她居然接梗了！She actually played along!
- 你累不累啊？你在我脑子里跑了一天了。Aren't you tired? You've been running through my mind all day.
- 我的缺点是什么？缺点你。What's my flaw? A lack of you.
- 我想买块地：你的死心塌地。I want to buy some land: your undying devotion.
- 你是什么血型？我的理想型！What's your blood type? My ideal type!
- 没打火机？那你怎么点燃我的心的？No lighter? Then how did you set my heart on fire?
- 你今天有点怪，怪好看的。You're a bit odd today: oddly gorgeous.
- 我是九，你是三，除了你还是你。I'm nine, you're three: divide me by you and it's still you.
- 星星在天上，你在我心里。The stars are in the sky; you're in my heart.
- 笑一个吧，我的咖啡忘加糖了。Give me a smile, I forgot to put sugar in my coffee.
- 你属什么？我属于你。What's your Chinese zodiac animal? I belong to you.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The Pick-up lines & cheesy lines speaking island has 8 everyday questions about pick-up lines & cheesy lines to prepare your own answers to.