# 牛B, 牛逼



## notnotchris

What does 牛Ｂ mean?

Here is the context (from a Youtube video comment):

"`tiesto```come china````come china`~  just waiting ~~`遗憾呀．能来中国就牛Ｂ了｀｀｀"

I'm guessing it means great, or cool... any explanations would be appreciated (including where this interesting word came from)


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## shangshui

Well, it is too Chinese. and it is a bad word. The word is usually used by men. But I suggest you don't use it.

yes, it means sort of great and cool. e.g.  这车真牛B. This car is cool.

But sometimes, it doesn't means that. e.g. 这人真牛B. This man is very powerful, capable, or he is doing something few people do. There is a little bit disapproval as you say it.

There are other phrases with B. 傻B. Stupid guy (very offensive)

It is not known who use this word at first. When you use it, you will be the first American using it.


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## Mugi

It means "(fxxking) awesome". The correct character for "B" is 屄 - a certain part of the female anatomy. Think "As big as a cow's ..." to get an idea of where the meaning comes from.
Originally Beijing slang, I think the term is common throughout China now.
If you ever use the term yourself, you certainly won't be the first American to do so...


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## kkmp

This is the everyday Chinese. Sometimes NB for short.


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## avlee

NB is a Beijing slanguage and very popular in the north of China.
The actual meaning is the c_u_n_t of a cow. The cow is very large. So the other part of it is also large comparing to human being. Thus, people start to say, "Wow, that thing is as big/great/cool/ as a cow's c_unt." And gradually, they say sth. is cow's c_unt in short to express their strong feelings of astonishment. The same as people say that's really sth.


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## notnotchris

Ha ha! What a great word I've stumbled upon.

Thanks a lot guys


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## avlee

People in the south of China seldom say that.
But I find that lots of people all over the country say 牛 instead of 牛B, like people say F word to mean the taboo word F_uck.
BTW, as kkmp says above, this phrase is often written as NB, esp. in cyber culture.


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## ofriendragon

When one brags, we say he is "吹牛皮"-ing. "吹牛" originally comes from the action of blowing into the ox-hide rafts when one,in northwestern China, wants to cross rivers. It needs skills indeed. (吹blow, 牛ox , 皮hide) (chui-Niu-Pi)
It is easy to connect "吹牛皮" with "吹牛屄<c_u_n_t of a cow>"(Chui-Niu-Bi) for the sake of their similar pronunciations and people's general slang manners, but why it means _talk bigger_, _brag_? I'm sorry it's beyond my knowledge.I guess when the raft is blown up, the man can easily cross the river, hence a braggart can get by difficulties by "吹牛屄"(braging)? If so, he NiuBi-s really. (He has the power to succeed!)

Now, if we say someone is 牛/牛B/NB，we mean he is really powerful. B is a taboo word except on extreme informal occasions. However, 你真牛<Ni-zhen-Niu> is a mass media word, which means you are great / cool / powerful, etc.)


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## notnotchris

Now this is interesting. I have heard 吹牛皮 before. Is 牛屄 a spin-off (vulgarization) from this, or does it mean big as a cow's vagina? To me the 吹牛皮 origin sounds more convincing.

Well, whatever the origin, I get the current meaning and usage. It's interesting that 牛 by itself is not vulgar. Kind of like how in English "suck" is acceptable and many people don't think of its origin (suck d*ck) when they use it.


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## Lugubert

I think the use was more innocent when referring to the couple who refused to move out from their house in Chongqing: 最牛钉子户. Wouldn't 最牛 be just "most stubborn" without any non-printable associations?


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## ofriendragon

最牛here still means most(最) powerful(牛). 
Now in China, more and more people know how to defend their legal rights, and this 最牛钉子户 belongs to one of them. To ask him to move out, the local government has no other way except to negotiate with him for the rights he claimed. It is considered to be powerful for an ordinary resident, in that area, to reason with the local government. This situation doesn't need any non-printable associations. No officials will hurt the NB householder, instead, they have a lot of things to think about. 

钉子 : nail, keep fixed as if were nailed up.
户 : householder


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## Lugubert

ofriendragon said:


> 钉子 : nail, keep fixed as if were nailed up.


One explanation I have seen is that it refers to a nail in your shoe, hence extremely irritating.


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## ofriendragon

Here its literal meaning will be fine. (You can't make him move out easily;He seems to be something nailed up there.) 

--------
I don't know what you mean exactly by *irritating* here, annoying?

钉子户: 难对付的人,特指故意违反或对抗有关政策、法规的人或家庭
(people hard to deal with, especially those individuals or families remain firm, deliberately, against laws, rules and regulations concerned )
Please mind the media's tone of 最牛钉子户, it is something in favor of this householder.

他可牛了
他牛死了
他牛B死了
他真NB.
(死了：extremely）
Whatever to say, they all mean the same: 他真厉害！


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## kareno999

notnotchris said:


> Ha ha! What a great word I've stumbled upon.
> 
> Thanks a lot guys


Use 牛 alone.
牛X is quite vulgar.


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## notnotchris

Thanks for the warning, Kareno999. I'll be careful about the situations I use it in.


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## rainBELL

牛屄 / 牛逼 / 牛B / NB   = freaking awesome ( it'll be funny)
傻屄 / 傻逼 / 傻B / SB   =  retarded shithead (utterly vulgar; simply do not use it)


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## *Louis*

[Moderator's Note: Merged with a previous thread]
Hey guys!

So, I'm trying to understand this sentence but it sounds a bit weird. It's from a novel which talks about love and this chapter is set in a high school. There is a "女神" which is the loved one by the main character.

他心里想着自己在高中女神面前能否牛x以及能否因为牛x了而尝点女神的甜头等等复杂问题.

I know that the X after 牛 means 牛逼, could please someone explain to me why?? 

Thanks in advance!!

Louis


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## brofeelgood

牛X, 牛逼, 牛B, NB, 牛掰 etc... are homophonic/semi-homophonic alternatives of *牛屄*.

Have a look at its entry in 汉典, and you'll understand why people often substitute the word with something else: 屄的解释|屄的意思|汉典“屄”字的基本解释

Also, check out these previous threads:
[...] (threads merged -- mod)
牛B, 装B


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## *Louis*

Thank you brofeelgood! Yeah, I imagined it was because they are homophones. But is it used here in an offensive way?

Could you please help me translate the sentence too? I'd be very happy!!!!


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## brofeelgood

他心里想着自己在高中女神面前能否牛x以及能否因为牛x了而尝点女神的甜头等等复杂问题.

Roughly: He wondered if he could pull off something awesome to impress the girl on whom he had a crush, and if that act would lead to some small reward/favour from her etc etc...


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## *Louis*

Yes, thanks brofeelgood. Let me say that it's such a strange sentence in Chinese!! :S :S

Thank you very much! You really helped me!


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## NewAmerica

Less offensive, but in a vulgar way.


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## Skatinginbc

牛x的動詞型式:
請問: 為什麼是牛x了, 而不是牛了x? 我覺得 牛了B 聽起來比 牛B了 順。就如同「操了xx的B」比 「操xx的B了」順口。

另外, 既然牛B又作牛掰,  可以說「掰了牛」或是 「把牛掰了」嗎?  譬如, 「在她面前掰了牛, 就能嚐到牛奶頭。」 能把牛掰了, 聽起來好像是件超猛的事。


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## SuperXW

We usually read 牛x as 牛叉(cha1), as x is a 叉 or 交叉(cross) in Chinese.
An x can replace a character for two reasons. Here, to make the word less vulgar.
But it still sounds somehow vulgar since 叉 and 插(insert, like "screw") are homophones, and 牛 itself is a bit vulgar.

We also use x to replace an anonymous name or place name, or a certain time point.
王xx: Someone whose surename is Wang. 
x省x市: A certain city, a certain province.
x时x分: A certain time point.
In this rather formal contexts x reads 某(mou3).


Skatinginbc said:


> 牛x的動詞型式:
> 請問: 為什麼是牛x了, 而不是牛了x? 我覺得 牛了B 聽起來比 牛B了 順。就如同「操了xx的B」比 「操xx的B了」順口。
> 
> 另外, 既然牛B又作牛掰,  可以說「掰了牛」或是 「把牛掰了」嗎?  譬如, 「在她面前掰了牛, 就能嚐到牛奶頭。」 能把牛掰了, 聽起來好像是件超猛的事。


你是怎么想的？
"牛屄"原指牛的器官，就是个名词，活用为形容词或动词。拆开就不是这个词了。
难道你以为“牛”本身是动词？
“掰”只是"屄"的谐音而已。


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## Skatinginbc

SuperXW said:


> 活用为形容词或动词...难道你以为“牛”本身是动词？


既然是活用, 為什麼不能只把"牛"動詞化?  
才稱讚他幾句, 他就「牛」起來了。


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## SuperXW

Skatinginbc said:


> 為什麼是牛x了, 而不是牛了x?...就如同「操了xx的B」比 「操xx的B了」順口。





Skatinginbc said:


> 既然是活用, 為什麼不能只把"牛"動詞化?
> 才稱讚他幾句, 他就「牛」起來了。


可以动词化，但这个“牛”显然没有“操”的意思吧？

其实你愿意的话，也可以自创个性化的说法，粗话无极限。
比如“妈了逼的”，就符合你的结构，还被人改成喵星语“喵了咪的”。


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## Skatinginbc

SuperXW said:


> 比如“妈了逼的”，就符合你的结构，还被人改成喵星语“喵了咪的”。


沒聽過"媽了逼的", 但第一次聽到, 覺得很順口, 很符合口語的慣用結構。牛逼是俗語, 所以我在這裡問的是口語習慣。 你們難道不覺得「牛了逼」比「牛逼了」更順口, 更口語化嗎？
你工了作, 就會知道賺錢不容易 ==> 挺口語的, 不是嗎？ 工作是一個名詞, 這裡把它拆開, 只將第一個字動詞化, 沒什麼不對吧？


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## retrogradedwithwind

我确实听过“牛了逼的/了”这种说法，分不清最后是的还是了。
牛了逼，这种似乎没有听说过。


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## Skatinginbc

retrogradedwithwind said:


> 我确实听过“牛了逼的/了”这种说法...牛了逼，这种似乎没有听说过。


為什麼?  我的問題就是: 為什麼多數人都說"牛逼了"或"牛了逼了"?
"牛了逼"是哪裡違反了口語語法？


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## SuperXW

Skatinginbc said:


> 為什麼?  我的問題就是: 為什麼多數人都說"牛逼了"或"牛了逼了"?
> "牛了逼"是哪裡違反了口語語法？


“牛”、“B”都是率先普及的名词性粗俗语，“牛逼”也是先自然组成一个合成名词，然后才有词性活用。
在这个过程中，“牛”从未成为过具象化的及物动词，跟“操”完全不同；“牛”最多也就是个不及物动词。“牛了逼”究竟是把逼怎样了？

不过不得不承认，语言形成有一定随机性。也许就是恰好“牛逼了”先流行起来，“牛了逼”没有形成市场。“妈了逼”“妈了个逼”“妈了个逼的”等也不符合现代语法，但是很流行，就是随机性的证明。


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## fyl

我觉得「牛了逼了」和「妈了逼的」不是一回事。
「妈了逼的」之类就是虚字垫字，纯粹的语气助词。「妈了逼的」也根本不是动词短语。「妈了逼了」是错误的。
「牛了逼了」是动词短语。我觉得「牛了逼」也不一定完全不可以，得看语境，比如「你要那一天牛了大逼，别忘了哥们」。


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## Skatinginbc

「牛了大逼」像「中了大獎」聽起來挺順的。

謝謝你們寶貴的意見。


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## retrogradedwithwind

「牛了大逼」非常顺耳，我完全接受。

这让我想到，有一种语法现象与此非常类似，就是在名词前加上形容词，就会使句子“合法性”大大增加。
比如开张→开了张→开了个大张

具体怎么回事就不清楚了。


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## SuperXW

fyl said:


> 我觉得「牛了逼了」和「妈了逼的」不是一回事。
> 「妈了逼的」之类就是虚字垫字，纯粹的语气助词。「妈了逼的」也根本不是动词短语。「妈了逼了」是错误的。
> 「牛了逼了」是动词短语。我觉得「牛了逼」也不一定完全不可以，得看语境，比如「你要那一天牛了大逼，别忘了哥们」。


同意。


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## Youngfun

他心里想着自己在高中女神面前能否牛x以及能否因为牛x了而尝点女神的甜头等等复杂问题.

In cuor suo stava pensando a problemi complessi, tipo se potesse fare il figo davanti alla sua ragazza dei sogni delle superiori, e se poiché aveva fatto il figo potesse "assaporare un po' della sua dolcezza", ecc.

I tried to be as literal as possible.



Skatinginbc said:


> 牛x的動詞型式:
> 請問: 為什麼是牛x了, 而不是牛了x? 我覺得 牛了B 聽起來比 牛B了 順。就如同「操了xx的B」比 「操xx的B了」順口。


我觉得“牛B”虽然是由两个名词组成的，但是现已变成固定的形容词及动词了，所以拆开不是很自然。就像“屌爆了”而不是“屌了爆”。

不过大陆除了“牛B”还可以单用“牛”一个字，所以我觉得“牛了”是可以的，不过我个人觉得“牛了”意味着“很棒”，没有“牛B”的贬义了（炫耀、装B）。

不过“装了B”好像是可以的，因为第一个字本身就是一个动词。

另外，关于动词后的“了”和句末的“了”（了1和了2），他们本身就有不一样的语法作用。



SuperXW said:


> 可比如“妈了逼的”，就符合你的结构，还被人改成喵星语“喵了咪的”。


这个我之前问过：个 / 的


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## kyotan

[Moderator's Note: Merged with a previous thread]
大家好！

I think "牛逼" can be used to mean "great", but should a 42 year-old woman avoid using this word?
I don't speak Chinese and I can't tell the degree of classiness/dirtiness or what age group use this word.
(I'm aware that 逼 means vulva.)

e.g. 中国人的表达能力太牛逼了 to mean 中国人的表达能力太棒了

谢谢


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## NewAmerica

My recommendation: Don't use such vulgarized words.
The expression like 表达能力太棒了is great enough.
And this is why I stopped replying to your another thread.


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## retrogradedwithwind

Though the words like 装逼牛逼傻逼 are so common that almost everybody might say them under certain circumstances, I also don't recommend foreigners especially foreign women say them because they would say them in an unnatural tone. With those unnatural tones it will be so funny and perceivable for us to hear.


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## fyl

太牛了 would mean the same and does not sound vulgar/rude.


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## SuperXW

今天听到有人用，所以我又回来了……


Skatinginbc said:


> 為什麼?  我的問題就是: 為什麼多數人都說"牛逼了"或"牛了逼了"?
> "牛了逼"是哪裡違反了口語語法？


牛逼 cow's cunt (awesome)
牛逼了 (had shown awesomeness; had been awesome)
牛了逼 cow the cunt 

“牛”和“牛逼”活用为动词时，其实不如说仍然是形容词，如“好了”、“太棒了”、“强大起来了”，形容一种状态，不能接宾语。
所以说“牛了逼”到底是把“逼”怎样了？
这和“操了逼”、“中了大奖”都明显不同……

“牛了逼”，可以作为创新的个性化用语，但不符合传统说法。


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