Chinese Capri-Sun is Down with Chinese Slang

I was surprised to see this on the Capri-Sun I ordered for my kids:

Capri-Sun 打call

No Chinese for the name “Capri-Sun,” but the Chinese reads:

为 你 打 call
wèi nǐ dǎ call

I’m always wary of investing too much time into new Chinese slang, because a lot of it falls out of usage very quickly. 打call, however, seems to be withstanding the test of time.

Just for fun I asked my 10-year-old daughter (who attends an all-Chinese school) if she knows what “打call” means. She didn’t. She guessed it meant “to make a phone call.” This is a common guess among Chinese people that don’t know the term, so don’t feel bad if that’s what you thought too. Plus there’s that “hang loose” hand symbol which seems to reinforce the incorrect “make a phone call” interpretation.

“为你打call” simply means “to support you,” or “supporting you” might sound better in this context. Even though some Chinese people don’t even know it (mostly kids and old people; my wife knew it) It’s a slang term I feel is worth knowing, since it’s been around over 5 years already and has not disappeared yet. Plus, as you can see, it’s still appearing in companies’ marketing efforts.


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

Related Post

外语外语

Pronunciation : wàiyǔ Meaning : (noun) foreign language HSK : 1 外 语 Pronunciation : wài Meaning : (noun) outer; outward; outside (adj) foreign; external (adj) not of the same

25 Years!25 Years!

I just had my 25th Chinaversary today. Although I don’t usually pay much attention to this date, 25 years felt like enough of a milestone to make a cheesy graphic

上边上边

Pronunciation : shàngbiān Meaning : (noun) above, on top HSK : 1 上 边 Pronunciation : shàng Meaning : (noun) on; above; upper (verb) go up; ascend (verb) go to;