蝌蝌啃蠟
See also: 蝌蝌啃蜡
Chinese
to gnaw; to nibble; to bite candle; wax trad. (蝌蝌啃蠟) 蝌 蝌 啃 蠟 simp. (蝌蝌啃蜡) 蝌 蝌 啃 蜡 variant forms 蝌蝌齦蠟/蝌蝌龈蜡 Literally: “tadpole chews wax”.
Etymology
Borrowed from English Coca-Cola. This was one of the very first names for Coca-Cola used in China in 1927, at a time when each vendor would come up with his own rendition of foreign names in Chinese.
Pronunciation
Proper noun
蝌蝌啃蠟
- (obsolete) Coca-Cola
Synonyms
- 可口可樂/可口可乐 (Kěkǒukělè)