Why does the Chinese word for "That one / Um..." sound like
The N-word...?!

那个

The Real Meaning

In Mandarin Chinese, the character 那个 (pronounced as nà ge) actually translates to That one / Um....

The Funny Part

Chinese people use this as a filler word like 'um'. It's THE most misunderstood word by foreigners. Don't panic on the subway.

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Nice Teacher says...

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那个 means 'that one' or 'um'. It's a filler word used ALL the time in Chinese. The pronunciation may surprise English speakers, but it's completely innocent!