公主请gōng zhǔ qǐng

Princess, please …

gōng zhǔ qǐng shàng chē!公主请上车！Princess, please get on!

公主请上车 means “princess, please get on”. As a meme, 公主请 goes before any verb to make an ordinary request sound royal: 公主请吃饭, “princess, please eat”.

Took off: 2023
Started in: A Douyin video
Today: Now everyday Chinese

What it means

It is a joke about wanting to be treated with care. Friends and couples test each other with it: will you say the line before I get in?

The male form is 王子请, “prince, please”.

How people use it

It is still a common joke between friends and couples. Cafeterias and shops use it on signs too, as in 公主请用餐, “princess, please enjoy your meal”.

亮亮

我到你楼下了
wǒ dào nǐ lóu xià le
I’m downstairs at your place.
你是不是忘了说什么？
nǐ shì bu shì wàng le shuō shén me?
Aren’t you forgetting to say something?
公主请上车！
gōng zhǔ qǐng shàng chē!
Princess, please get in!
好，这才对嘛
hǎo, zhè cái duì ma
OK, that’s more like it.

More examples

公主请上班，今天也要加油。
gōng zhǔ qǐng shàng bān, jīn tiān yě yào jiā yóu.
Princess, please go to work. Do your best today too.
奶茶到了，公主请喝。
nǎi chá dào le, gōng zhǔ qǐng hē.
Your milk tea is here. Princess, please drink.

Where it came from

It started with a Douyin video in 2023. A father comes to pick up his daughter on a pink electric scooter, and she will not get on until he says 公主请上车. He thinks this is silly and rides off without her.

People filmed their own versions, and the line moved to work and shopping: 公主请上班, “princess, please go to work”, and 公主请下单, “princess, please place your order”, in livestream sales. In December 2023, China Daily reported that Kunming Metro Line 1 played “princess, please board the train” at its stations.

语言文字周报 put the pattern on its list of the ten top internet phrases of 2023. Some articles link the line to the film Roman Holiday.

The original. A short video: a father on a pink electric scooter at the roadside, his daughter refusing to get on until he says the line, then the scooter leaving without her. China Daily describes it. China Daily