city不city

What does city不city mean?

Someone shows you a new café and asks “city不city?”; the expected answer is “很city”. The joke is grammatical: it drops the English word “city” into the Chinese “A不A” yes-or-no template, so the question literally means “is it city or not?”. Here “city” stands loosely for modern, stylish, exciting or fun, and it gets aimed at outfits, street food, trips and any experience that feels fashionable or new. The clumsy, deliberate mismatch of English and Chinese is most of the charm.

Where does city不city come from?

The American vlogger known in China as 保保熊 (Baobao Bear) supplied the template, posting travel videos in which he and his sister asked each other whether Shanghai was “city不city” and answered “so city”. The clips blew up in 2024, just as more foreign visitors were traveling to China, and by the end of the year the phrase sat on two lists at once: 《咬文嚼字》 (Yaowen Jiaozi)'s buzzwords and Douyin's.

How to use city不city

• 这家咖啡店装修得好city啊！
  Zhè jiā kāfēi diàn zhuāngxiū de hǎo city a!
  This café's decor is so city!
• 周末去逛夜市，city不city？
  Zhōumò qù guàng yèshì, city bù city?
  Hitting the night market this weekend, is that city or what?