Ai ya!

Language: Chinese

• What it means: An all-purpose interjection. “Ai ya” can be used to express a range of sentiments, including (but not limited to) surprise (Wow!); panic (Oh no!); annoyance or frustration (Unbelievable!); impatience (C’mon!); disbelief (Seriously!?); pain (Ouch!); disgust or disappointment (Uggh…); sympathy (Oh, that’s terrible!); and mild error (Whoops!) The actual meaning depends on context and the tone of voice used.

• Word origin: It’s an interjection, so who knows? Its closest analogue is probably the multi-purpose Yiddish interjection “Oy vey!”…but it’s likely these two phrases evolved independently.

• Sample sentence: “Āiyā! Wǒ de kùzǐ sī pò le!” (Ai ya! I just ripped my pants.) [See: Calvin in the picture above.]  

• Does it work in English? It can, but probably best used if you’re Chinese (or at least your friends are).  

• See also: This handy video guide demonstrating several ways to use “Ai ya”: