電蛐蛐

Chinese

FWOTD – 10 March 2022

	electric; electricity; electrical	cricket
trad. (電蛐蛐)	電	蛐蛐
simp. (电蛐蛐)	电	蛐蛐
Literally: “electric cricket”.

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Standard)
(Pinyin): diànqūqu
(Zhuyin): ㄉㄧㄢˋ ㄑㄩ ˙ㄑㄩ
(Chengdu, SP): dian⁴ qu¹ qu¹

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: diànqūqu
  - Zhuyin: ㄉㄧㄢˋ ㄑㄩ ˙ㄑㄩ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: diàncyucyů
  - Wade–Giles: tien⁴-chʻü¹-chʻü⁵
  - Yale: dyàn-chyū-chyu
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: diannchiu.chiu
  - Palladius: дяньцюйцюй (djanʹcjujcjuj)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /tjɛn⁵¹ t͡ɕʰy⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰy²/
- (Standard Chinese, erhua-ed) (電蛐蛐兒／电蛐蛐儿)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: diànqūqur
  - Zhuyin: ㄉㄧㄢˋ ㄑㄩ ˙ㄑㄩㄦ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: diàncyucyůr
  - Wade–Giles: tien⁴-chʻü¹-chʻürh⁵
  - Yale: dyàn-chyū-chyur
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: diannchiu.chiuel
  - Palladius: дяньцюйцюйр (djanʹcjujcjujr)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /tjɛn⁵¹ t͡ɕʰy⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰyə̯ɻ²/
- (Chengdu)
  - Sichuanese Pinyin: dian⁴ qu¹ qu¹
  - Scuanxua Ladinxua Xin Wenz: diankyky
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /tiɛn²¹³ t͡ɕʰy⁵⁵ t͡ɕʰy⁵⁵/

Noun

電蛐蛐

(Mandarin, regional, colloquial, humorous) pager; beeper (device)
- 如今的舊友中，把褲腰帶上別一電蛐蛐，整天東奔西走，蒙吃蒙喝，招搖過市的淺陋之徒越來越多了，而如祥明這麼赤誠執著的人，卻已是鳳毛麟角，也許正由於此，我反而格外地敬重這位城市裡的莊戶人，我覺得修祥明永遠是富有的，這除了他的鄉土經歷、他的朋友之外，還因為他擁有文學。 [MSC, trad.]
  如今的旧友中，把裤腰带上别一电蛐蛐，整天东奔西走，蒙吃蒙喝，招摇过市的浅陋之徒越来越多了，而如祥明这么赤诚执著的人，却已是凤毛麟角，也许正由于此，我反而格外地敬重这位城市里的庄户人，我觉得修祥明永远是富有的，这除了他的乡土经历、他的朋友之外，还因为他拥有文学。 [MSC, simp.]
  From: 1995, 高胜历, 城市里的庄户人, in 《高胜历散文随笔选》, Qingdao: 青岛出版社, page 187
  Rújīn de jiùyǒu zhōng, bǎ kùyāodài shang bié yī diànqūqu, zhěngtiān dōngbēnxīzǒu, mēngchīmēnghē, zhāoyáoguòshì de qiǎnlòu zhī tú yuè lái yuè duō le, ér rú Xiángmíng zhème chìchéng zhízhuó de rén, què yǐ shì fèngmáolínjiǎo, yěxǔ zhèng yóuyú cǐ, wǒ fǎn'ér géwài de jìngzhòng zhè wèi chéngshì lǐ de zhuānghùrén, wǒ juéde Xiū Xiángmíng yǒngyuǎn shì fùyǒu de, zhè chúle tā de xiāngtǔ jīnglì, tā de péngyou zhīwài, hái yīnwèi tā yōngyǒu wénxué. [Pinyin]
  Among my old friends now, there are more and more of these shallow people who have beepers clipped onto their belts, running about all day, cheating their way, and act ostentatiously in public, yet people who are as sincere and persistent as Xiangming are very rare. Perhaps exactly because of this, I actually particularly respect this farmer in the city. I think that Xiu Xiangming is forever rich; other than his experiences in his hometown and his friends, it is also because he has literature.
- 校長威嚴地宣佈：「有誰帶了BP機，馬上交出來！」就像是搜查毒品和槍支彈藥。大家呆住了，沒有電蛐蛐的抬起頭，臉上露出得意的微笑。帶了電蛐蛐的不由自主地低下頭，目光四處躲閃，像一群剛剛出洞的小老鼠。 [MSC, trad.]
  校长威严地宣布：“有谁带了BP机，马上交出来！”就像是搜查毒品和枪支弹药。大家呆住了，没有电蛐蛐的抬起头，脸上露出得意的微笑。带了电蛐蛐的不由自主地低下头，目光四处躲闪，像一群刚刚出洞的小老鼠。 [MSC, simp.]
  From: 2002, 张之路, 《李大米和他的影子》, Shenyang: 春风文艺出版社, page 73
  Xiàozhǎng wēiyán de xuānbù: “Yǒu shéi dài le BP-jī, mǎshàng jiāo chūlai!” Jiùxiàng shì sōuchá dúpǐn hé qiāngzhī dànyào. Dàjiā dāi zhù le, méiyǒu diànqūqu de tái qǐ tóu, liǎnshang lùchū déyì de wēixiào. Dài le diànqūqu de bùyóuzìzhǔ de dī xià tóu, mùguāng sìchù duǒshǎn, xiàng yī qún gānggāng chū dòng de xiǎo lǎoshǔ. [Pinyin]
  The principal solemnly announced, "Whoever brought a pager must hand it over immediately!" It was just like a search for drugs, firearms and ammunition. Everyone was stunned. Those who did not have a beeper lifted up their heads, smiling smugly. Those who brought a beeper couldn't help but lower their heads, and their evasive eyes looked all over the place, like a mischief of little mice that have just come out of a hole.

Synonyms

Dialectal synonyms of 傳呼機 (“pager; beeper”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		傳呼機, 尋呼機 Mainland China
Mandarin	Beijing	電蛐蛐兒
	Taiwan	呼叫器, 叩機, BB Call
	Harbin	電蛐蛐兒
	Wanrong	BP機
	Wuhan	電蛐蛐
	Chengdu	電蛐蛐兒, 電蛐蛐
	Singapore	傳呼機
Cantonese	Guangzhou	call機, BB機
	Hong Kong	傳呼機, call機, BB機
	Kaiping (Chikan)	BB機, call機
	Dongguan	BB機, call機
Min Nan	Xiamen	呼機
	Quanzhou	呼機
	Zhangzhou	呼機
	Tainan	呼機仔
Wu	Shanghai	拷機