User:Lc1101/sandbox

Hong Kong Threads Slangs

Background: Threads became a popular application in Hong Kong in 2023. Threads users in Hong Kong reached 1.07 million. As more Hong Kong users joined Threads, they began creating and popularising a lot of new slangs on Threads. Those slangs are generally created and used by youngsters and influencers.

Examples with explanation

There are numerous slangs that are commonly used among the younger generations in Hong Kong which are usually created by combining short forms of Cantonese and English words.

• “影到我plz del” , directly meaning you caught me in the photo, please delete. Originally it is used when people are being photographed without consent. Later on, it evolved as a meme which is commonly used to describe when they have similar experiences with others on the internet. Then, they will comment this phrase on some posts in order to relate to others.
• “老best”, directly meaning bestie or best friend. This phrase combines a previous used phrase “老死” and the word bestie.
• “mm7”, is a quick code for “正” in Chinese that is originated from MIRROR member Jer.
• “Siu4”, directly meaning laugh die. It is usually used in hilarious, funny conditions. When this phrase is read out, it pronounces almost the same as 笑死 in Cantonese, which “Siu” equal to laugh and “4” equal to die in Cantonese. This can be counted as a pun which is commonly used in daily lives even in text messages and comments.
• “Firm”, originally meaning stable, certain, but now in slang meaning very good, being recognized or impressive. It is first used by members of the local YouTuber, JFFT, then being spread out through their younger audiences thus promoted in the communities. It is considered a positive phrase for giving compliments and praises to others.
• “0尊”, directly meaning zero respect. This word is used when people show no respect to others. This word is created from the short form of  “零尊重”. This can be considered as a negative, insulting term.

Reasons of emergence and spread

• Society trending hot topics

For example 「你7街瞓」is from Ho Pak（何伯）and Ho Tai（何太）.They became famous after the TV programme Scoop (東張西望) .In a later livestream, Ho Tai shouted at Ho Pak “Go sleep on the street, don’t follow me anymore” (你出街瞓 唔好再跟住我）People shared the video on social media. Her pronunciation of “out” (出) sounded like “7” in Cantonese which netizen found funny. Therefore, this line quickly became a slang phrase on Threads.

• KOL/celebrities influence

“Mm7” is comes from the typing code in Cantonese for 「正」.Fans of mirror started using it to type faster, and Mirror member Jer popularized it. So mm7 became a slang term.

• Imitate

A post suddenly went viral with some certain phrases, such as「每日一post直到xxx」 Some netizens hope to gain more views and started using the same word. Over time, these words became a slang trend.

• Fast paced life

Due to fast paced life in Hong Kong, many Hong Kong people prefer abbreviations or shortened phrases to type less words. However those words became slang. They also commonly mix Cantonese and English words to create slang. Such as “老best” (Mixed “老友” with best friend), MNYY (stand for Must Need 要有 ) and JHGG (即係咁講) (it is initialism based on Cantonese pronunciation).