Materialistic

Origin and Meaning
The phrase 物质(wùzhì) materialistic comes from a poem in Jin Dynasty, and it refers to substance and materials. But with the rapid development of material life, many people are paying more attention to materialistic things while ignoring the spiritual life. So now the phrase, as an adjective, is used to describe someone who is more concerned with material life, such as money, clothes and other objects. 物(wù) refers to matters or objects and 质(zhì) refers to quality.

Usage of the Phrase
e.g.  1.你也太物质了吧。  
           Nĭ yĕ tài wùzhì le ba.
           You are so materialistic.
        2.不要太物质了，精神生活也是很必要的。  
           Bú yào tài wùzhì le, jīngshen shēnghuó yĕ shì hĕn bìyào de.
           You shouldn't be so materialistic, for spiritual life is necessary too.

Show

Origin and Meaning
The word 秀(xiù) comes from the transliteration of the English word "show." Literally, it means handsome and elegant. But now it is more commonly used as the verb "to show."

Usage of the Phrase
他又在秀自己的新发明。  
Tā yòu zài xiù zìjĭ de xīn fāmíng.
He shows his new invention to us again.
大家快来秀一秀自己的想法，看谁的最棒！  
Dàjiā kuài lái xiù yi xiù zìjĭ de xiăngfă, kàn shuí de zuì bàng.
Let's all show our ideas and see which one is the best.

做/作秀(zuòxiù) Make a Show   
The phrase 做/作秀(zuòxiù), or "make a show," originates from the entertainment circles in Hong Kong and Taiwan and means to perform. Now people usually use the phrase to describe someone who does something superficially in order to gain others' approval. 做/作(zuò) means to make here. You can say: "别做/作秀了,你那点儿花花肠子我还不了解吗? (Bié zuòxiù le, nĭ nà diănr huāhuā chángzi wŏ hái bù liáojiĕ ma?)" Don't pretend (make a show), you think I don't know what you're plotting.

脱口秀(tuōkŏuxiù) Talk Show   
脱口秀(tuōkŏuxiù), or "talk show," is a kind of TV program. The Chinese phrase originates from the transliteration of the English phrase "talk show." 脱(tuō) literally means to take off, but here it means to say something quickly and fluently. 口(kŏu) refers to mouth. 秀(xiù) means to show.

时装秀(shízhuāngxiù) Fashion Show  
时装秀(shízhuāngxiù), or fashion show, is a kind of stage art. 时(shí) literally refers to time, but here it means fashion. 装(zhuāng) means costume and dress.

模仿秀(mófăngxiù) Imitation Show   
Now 模仿秀(mófăngxiù), or imitation show, is a very popular TV program in China in which many people try to imitate the stars they adore. 模(mó) refers to a model, or someone trying to imitate, and 仿(făng) means to imitate.

Kiss Up to Someone

Where does it originate from?
As early as the Yuan Dynasty, herders were proud of raising horses. When horse herders encountered one another, they would often pat the buttocks of the others' horse and say, "What a good horse!" to fawn on the owner of the horse. At first, people only praised truly good horses, but soon people began to do this to flatter others, regardless of whether the herder's horse was good or bad, strong or weak. In this way, people began to flatter and kiss up to one another, and this action became known as 拍马屁(pāimăpì) to kiss up.

What does it mean?
拍马屁(pāimăpì) refers literally to patting a horse's buttocks: 拍(pāi) means to pat; 马(mă) is horse and 屁(pì) refers to fart or buttocks. But now 拍马屁(pāimăpì) is widely used as an analogy to ridicule blatant flattery that is meant to please others without regard for objective reality. Consequently, people who like to kiss up or brownnose are called 马屁精(măpìjīng), which means flatterer or brownnoser.

Where is it used?
拍马屁(pāimăpì) is usually used in the following context:
e.g. 这家伙是拍马屁的好手，总能让上司高兴！   
       Zhè jiāhuo shì pāimăpì de háoshŏu, zŏng néng ràng shàngsī gāoxìng!
       This guy is an expert at kissing up, always pleasing his authorities.
       他善于拍马屁，所以升迁很快。   
       Tā shànyú pāimăpì, suŏyĭ shēngqiān hĕn kuài.
       He is good at kissing up, so he gets promoted very quickly. 

Reliable; To be believed

Origin and Meaning
靠谱(kàopŭ) is a northern dialect in China, and it is a popular word belonging to the post-modern era. The meaning is reliable and to be believed. When you pronounce it, it's best to add a retroflex sound 儿(ér) at the end of 谱(pŭ), just like 靠谱儿(kàopŭr). If you say that somebody who deals with something is 靠谱儿(kàopŭr), that means you can rely on him and he will handle it. If you say that something is 靠谱儿(kàopŭr), that means what you want to do is feasible and reasonable. The opposite is 不靠谱儿(búkàopŭr) which means that something is digressing from the subject, straying from the point or is unpractical. 靠(kào) means to rely on 谱(pŭ) means a chart or music score literally, but here it refers to feasibility and rationality.

Usage of the Phrase
你这人真不靠谱儿！  
Nĭ zhè rén zhēn bú kàopŭr!
You're so unreliable!
这件事一点都不靠谱儿，估计不好办。  
zhè jiàn shì yì diăn dōu bú kàopŭr, gūjì bù hăo bàn.
This isn't feasible at all. I'm afraid that it won't be finished easily.

mortgage slave

Where does the phrase originate from?
In Shenzhen, a southern city in China, it's always very costly for common workers to buy an apartment or a house. A 32 -year-old Shenzhener surnamed Zhou from Futian complained that over half of his monthly salary went to pay his mortgage. Zhou felt he had become oppressed like serfs who couldn't leave the land on which they worked. He was the first person to use 房奴(fángnú) mortgage slave to describe his miserable situation. Then 房奴(fángnú) mortgage slave became popular very soon.

What does it mean?
房奴(fángnú) mortgage slave is used to describe those people who have to pay significant portion of their monthly salary toward mortgage payment. In order to pay off the mortgage, they dare not easily change their jobs. They spend little money on entertainment, and cannot afford to travel, let alone enjoy life. Meanwhile, they worry about being sick and losing their jobs. They suffer a lot in order to buy their own apartments, and have to struggle in life.

How to use the phrase?
E.g. 他把自己描述为公寓的房奴。(Tā bă zìjĭ miáoshù wéi gōngyù de fángnú.)  
       He described himself as a mortgage slave to his apartment.

闪(shăn) to act quickly
闪(shăn) is often used as 闪耀(shănyào) to glitter or shine, it has other popular usages lately.   
1. 闪人(shănrén) means that somebody leaves quickly.  
      E.g. 我先闪人了，你一会再过来找我吧。  
             Wŏ xiān shănrén le, nĭ yíhuì zài guòlái zhăo wŏ ba.
             I go first, you may come to me after a while.
2. 闪婚(shănhūn) means getting married quickly.  
      E.g. 他俩才认识一个月就闪婚了。  
             Tā liă cái rènshi yígè yuè jiù shănhūn le.
             They got married so quickly since they knew each other only for a month.

What does this word mean?
It has been one of the most popular Internet words since 2008. With the original meaning of thunder, the word ("雷"Léi) has been given another meaning on the web. Now it means that one is shocked by some bold actions, or by strange or even embarrassing things. It is said that this word is originated from the word "雷倒" (léi dăo), which is the dialect of "浙江" (zhèjiang) province of China.

How to use the word?
You can say "我被雷到了" (wŏ bèi léi dào le) or "好雷人啊" (hăo léi rén a) to express "I am shocked". So there are many circumstances for you to use this word. For example, after watching a video in which a bear dances like a ballet dancer, you can say "我被雷到了" (wŏ bèi léi dào le) to express "I am shocked by this bear".

"山寨" shān zhài

The Backgrounds of "山寨"shān zhài
The Chinese word "山寨" (shān zhài) literally refers to remote mountain villages that are mostly beyond the reach of administrative control. Recently, however, the word has been used to describe people who imitate celebrities, or describe products or works of art or pop culture that have borrowed ideas from famous brands products or works. "山寨" (shān zhài) has become a culture of its own, symbolizing anything that imitates something famous.

The Popularity of "山寨" (shān zhài) culture
"山寨" (shān zhài) has become an accepted name for the replicated products of brand goods after "山寨" (shān zhài) Cell phones produced by small individual workshops in southern China became popular in the mainland market over the past two years. Besides "山寨" (shān zhài) electronic products, of which there are many, there are "山寨" (shān zhài) movies, "山寨" (shān zhài) stars and even a "山寨" (shān zhài) Spring Festival Gala, a copy of the 25-year-old traditional show presented by CCTV on Chinese Lunar New Year's eve.

to argue for the sake of arguing

Where does the phrase originate from?
In the north of China in early times, there existed a custom called "抬杠会(táigànghuì)" argue meeting. On the day of Lantern Festival, some strong men carried the bamboo "杠(gàng)," on which there is a sedan. A clown with a ready tongue sits in it. They carried the sedan in the crowd and the crowd could have quarreling competitions with the clown. So this kind of meeting is the origin of "抬杠(táigàng)" arguing.

What does this phrase mean?
The phrase "抬杠(táigàng)" refers to a kind of cultural custom, which is a clever way for people to blame others or avoid others' blame. The famous cross-talk is a prominent example in which two people take part in a clever quarrel to blame each other. The word "抬(tái)" means you lift something heavy such as a big stone, a sedan. And the word "杠(gàng)" refers to a kind of pole to lift something.

How to use the phrase?
You can use "抬杠(táigàng)" like this: You can say "我受不了他了，他总是跟我抬杠(wŏ shòu bù liăo ta le, ta zŏngshì gēn wŏ táigàng)" I cannot stand him, because he always argues with me. Or you can say "我们一见面就抬杠(wŏmen yī jiànmiàn jiù táigàng)" we argue with each other whenever we meet, to mean that you can not get along well with that person.

to fail to keep an appointment

The origin of this phrase:
The phrase "放鸽子(fàng gēzi)" mainly means that one doesn't keep his promise. The meaning of the word "放(fàng)" means sending something. And "鸽子(gēzi)" refers to a dove, a kind of bird. The phrase is from a story. In ancient times, people mailed letters by doves. One time, two people agreed to write letters to each other, but one of them sent a dove without letters. Then another people said: "why did you just send the dove? And you haven't kept your promise." So the phrase is used with the meaning that one hasn't kept his/her promises.

The use of the phrase:
The popular meaning of the phrase is used in the following situation: one makes an appointment with another, but the latter fails to keep the appointment. So the former is "被放鸽子(bèi fàng gēzi)." You can say "我被朋友放鸽子了(wŏ bèi péngyou fàng gēzi le)" my friend fails to keep the appointment to express that your friend didn't keep his/her words with you.