Exploring Netizen Slang: What is a “Green Tea Bitch?”

Exploring Netizen Slang: What is a “Green Tea Bitch?”
Apr 22, 2015 By Malgorzata Modlinska , ShanghaiCityGirl.com

Tea is a 5000-year-old staple of Chinese culture. It is the engine of economic development, and the embodiment of both the spirit of civilization, and the spirit of Chinese ideological form. Since 2737 BCE, when first discovered by the legendary Chinese emperor Shennong, tea has gained popularity in its various types, colors and smells.

Tea, or maybe its resourceful producers, has also kept up with the times, becoming an essential element of youth-enhancing beauty products which claim to help women worldwide to keep their 20-something look intact and save their bodies from dreaded weight gain. I personally have become addicted to rose bud tea and I hadn’t been able to imagine that this magical, timeless drink might have any conceivable negative connotations. I couldn’t be more wrong.

Chinese Netizens will spare no effort to mock anything popular, including innocent tea. And in 2013, between March and April, they marred the flawless reputation of green tea by coining the term “green tea bitch.”

Why did green tea deserve to be defiled as such? Green tea has always had the reputation for being clean, pure, quiet and sophisticated. The green tea bitch, on the other hand, pretends to be pure and innocent, but in fact is manipulative and calculating. So-called green tea bitches tend to have long straight hair parted in the middle or with bangs, their skin color tends to be on the paler side, and most of them aren’t drop dead gorgeous but not ugly either. These green tea bitch's favorite expression is to open their eyes wide and look at people (especially men) cluelessly.

How do green tea bitches behave? When at a dinner party, a green tea bitch always sits next to a male friend. After three rounds of wine or beer, she always has a man's arm around her waist, and still has the most innocent look on her face as if she has no idea what happened. When eating out, she takes two bites and says, “OMG I'm such a pig!’’ She speaks softly and weakly, as if she hasn't eaten for three days and her favorite lines are, “Oh I'm so stupid," and "Oh I'm so clumsy.”

So, you have a seemingly innocent female pal. However, you suddenly realize your boyfriend somehow friended her on Facebook, and they follow each other on Twitter. He also has her phone number and they actually have a lot of chats, but you have no idea how they even know each other. Congratulations, you seem to have a GTB friend!

The phenomenon is so serious that Netizens even named the original green tea bitch: Lin Huyin, a famous Chinese poet, architect and writer from the beginning of 20th century. Allegedly, Miss Lin, despite plain looks, was successful, ambitious, and managed to conquer the hearts of quite a few rich and talented men.

There are more than one kind of “beverage bitch,” in China. Netizens have also coined the term “coffee bitches,” who are high end office ladies who constantly mix English with Chinese, dress only according to the latest fashion and, love to snap selfies in fancy restaurants or on sunny beaches. There are also “red tea bitches,” or promiscuous girls who smoke, drink, overuse eyeliner and wear low cut clothes showing cleavage. A “milk tea bitch,” is a woman who talks in a girlish voice and has extremely sweet looks. She is always kind to everyone around her, but only because she wants to attract men who will give her presents.

Just like tea, Chinese feminine roles and images have undergone a significant revolution, but the ever brutal internet has since tried shoot them down. Fortunately, many strong women have wrestled the matter back into their own hands by kicking off an anti-bitch campaign, countering sexist Netizen rhetoric with the slogan, “Not your tea, not your bitch.”

Malgorzata Modlinska is a writer living in Shanghai. Her blog focuses on Chinese Netizen slang, healthy living in Shanghai, where to find great deals in the city. Read more from her at ShanghaiCityGirl.

 

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Keywords: China Netizen slang China green tea bitch

11 Comments

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Guest14819194

tea tea tea tea is not good for your heart

Sep 28, 2016 09:43 Report Abuse

Guest2781358

The number one reason to learn to speak a bit of Chinese at least is to not have to deal with money chasers or foreigner chasers and just talk to someone who shares a common hobby and I mean that for both male and female friends.

Jul 08, 2015 00:29 Report Abuse

coineineagh

in the old times, foreign ethnicities were defined by the food they ate. laowai are still considered beef eaters, muslims are "shuns pork people", jews are "extract sinew people". not much has changed, only now Chinese judge non-conformers by the non-water beverages they drink. it's really their own fault for not drinking hot water like everybody else.

Apr 26, 2015 15:45 Report Abuse

bill8899

Where can I find a girl with bang? I want that kinder grrrl.

Apr 22, 2015 20:45 Report Abuse

wagon

I stopped reading at, "Since 2737 BCE, when first discovered by the legendary Chinese emperor Shennong."

Apr 22, 2015 16:27 Report Abuse

Quinn68

I live in Fujian where there are a lot of oolong tea bitches.

Apr 22, 2015 10:44 Report Abuse

kasuka91

How is it said in Chinese?

Apr 22, 2015 08:39 Report Abuse

gouxiong

绿茶婊子 (lv4 cha2 biao3 zi) or 绿茶婊 (lv4 cha2 biao3). But I am not sure it's so popular as the article indicates. On top of that I doubt any man would have a problem with such a behaviour. It's probably not a coincidence this article is written by the girl ...

Apr 22, 2015 09:24 Report Abuse

Englteachted

Men with low self esteem hate women. No matter where you go. China is the capitol.

Apr 22, 2015 08:10 Report Abuse

Guest14237618

I feel like many websites these days are trying real hard to give a bad rep to Chinese girls, probably so Foreign men stop stealing Chinese girls from Chinese boys. Too bad, we all know that there are many wonderful women in China, you will find them if you don't look for a girlfriend in bars, clubs or at the shopping mall, good luck.

Apr 22, 2015 06:40 Report Abuse

bayuvar139

Certainly a refreshingly different viewpoint. I like. Also like your various blogs.

Apr 22, 2015 06:26 Report Abuse