Chinese internet slangcutting the leeks · fleecing

割韭菜 gē jiǔ cài

Taking money from people who do not know better.

The short answer

CasualNow commonChecked November 2026

Ge jiucai means “to cut the leeks”: to take money from many small investors or buyers who do not know better. The 韭菜 (leeks) are the people who lose money, again and again.

Literal: to cut + Chinese chives (often called leeks in English)Register: Casual. Common in talk about stocks, paid courses and online sales.

In a chat

  1. 里昂 Leon

    有个网红在卖理财课，九百九十九块。

    Yǒu ge wǎnghóng zài mài lǐcái kè, jiǔbǎi jiǔshíjiǔ kuài.

    An influencer is selling a finance course for 999 yuan.

  2. 灯灯 Dengdeng

    他说能让你赚多少？

    Tā shuō néng ràng nǐ zhuàn duōshao?

    How much does he say you'll make?

  3. 里昂 Leon

    一年赚一百万。

    Yī nián zhuàn yībǎi wàn.

    A million a year.

  4. 灯灯 Dengdeng

    别买，他就是在割韭菜。

    Bié mǎi, tā jiù shì zài gē jiǔcài.

    Don't buy it. He's just fleecing people.

In the Dengdeng app, Dengdeng and his friends text you in Chinese every day, at your level.

How to reply

  • 我才不当韭菜。

    Wǒ cái bù dāng jiǔcài.

    I'm not going to be a leek.

  • 谢谢提醒，差点被割了。

    Xièxie tíxǐng, chàdiǎn bèi gē le.

    Thanks for the warning. I almost got fleeced.

When not to use it

  • Do not call a friend a 韭菜 after they lose money. It says they were foolish.
  • In a formal complaint, describe the facts, for example 虚假宣传 (false advertising).

What it means

Chinese chives (韭菜) grow back after you cut them, so a farmer can cut the same plants many times. In the slang, small investors or buyers are the chives. The person who takes their money cuts them, and a new group grows back for the next cut.

The word says that one side earns its money from the losses of the other side.

How people use it

被割韭菜 is “to be fleeced”, and 割了一波韭菜 is “to fleece a whole round of people”. People call themselves 韭菜 after they buy a stock at its highest price.

The word also covers expensive courses, products with big promises, and anything sold to people who cannot judge its value.

Where it comes from

A finance note on CMoney explains the image: chives that are ready for harvest are cut, and they grow back. In the market, a steady supply of new small investors comes in to be cut, and the people who make money earn it from the people who lose it.

In use

2 examples
01

这(Zhè)种(zhǒng)课(kè)太(tài)贵(guì)了(le)，就(jiù)是(shì)割(gē)韭(jiǔ)菜(cài)。

This kind of course is too expensive. It's just fleecing people.

02

我(Wǒ)在(zài)最(zuì)高(gāo)点(diǎn)买(mǎi)的(de)，又(yòu)当(dāng)了(le)一(yī)回(huí)韭(jiǔ)菜(cài)。

I bought at the top and got fleeced again.

The characters

Explore individually
割
gē

to cut

韭
jiǔ

Chinese chives

菜
cài

vegetable

Individual character meanings do not always explain the meaning of the whole word.

Sources

This guide is original Dengdeng editorial content, offered under CC BY-SA 4.0. The linked dictionary entries adapt CC-CEDICT under the same license.

More internet slangExplore words in context