Are you a person who is concerned about the body shapes of yourself and others? Sometimes on the street, we can't take our eyes away when we see some nice body types, or some "辣眼睛 (làyǎnjīng) eyes feeling spicy" types. In Chinese, we have some vivid phrases to describe the perfect and imperfect body parts in a fun way. Applying these useful and funny Mandarin Chinese knowledge points with friends in conversation is essential to gain fluency.

Here are 3 of my favorites:

1. 啤酒肚 (píjiǔ dù): beer belly.

Well, just as we simply put two and two together in English and call it what it is, the Chinese do too! "啤酒 (píjiǔ) beer" + "肚 (dù) belly" is a common expression that is associated with many middle-aged men who enjoy a few too many beers over dinner with friends. This abdominal later of obesity is not good for health and may be a sign to change lifestyle. Maybe it's you, or maybe it's your friend. Take care! You may need to do some exercises if your "啤酒肚 (píjiǔ dù) beer belly" begins to appear.

Example:
Nǐ yǒu pí jiǔ dù ma?
你 有   啤酒  肚 吗？
Do you have a beer belly?

2.巴掌脸 ( bāzhǎng liǎn): palm-sized face.

Unlike a beer belly or elephant legs, most Chinese girls would like a "巴掌脸 (bāzhǎng liǎn)". 巴掌 (bāzhǎng) means palm, and 脸 (liǎn) means face. "巴掌脸 (bāzhǎng liǎn) palm-sized face" is used to describe someone's face is very small. In China, having a small face is a sign of beauty traditionally. The famous Chinese actress Fan Bingbing (the award Winning Actress is #2 in "MODE's World's 100 Most Beautiful Women) has...Read more