illegal immigrant; stowaway; human cargo
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 3 examplesnoun
illegal immigrant; stowaway; person smuggled across borders
dialectOriginally Cantonese slang (人蛇 jan4 se4), now widely understood in Mandarin. The term compares smuggled humans to snakes being transported in hidden compartments (containers, ship holds, etc.), emphasizing the clandestine and often dangerous nature of human smuggling. Commonly used in news reporting on illegal immigration and border control.
Jǐng警
fāng方
zài在
yī一
sōu艘
huò货
lún轮
de的
jí集
zhuāng装
xiāng箱
nèi内
fā发
xiàn现
le了
èr二
shí十
duō多
tiáo条
rén人
shé蛇
。
Police discovered more than twenty stowaways inside a shipping container on a cargo vessel.
Zhè这
xiē些
rén人
shé蛇
mào冒
zhe着
shēng生
mìng命
wēi危
xiǎn险
tōu偷
dù渡
dào到
Ōu欧
zhōu洲
，
zhǐ只
wéi为
xún寻
zhǎo找
gèng更
hǎo好
de的
shēng生
huó活
tiáo条
jiàn件
。
These illegal immigrants risked their lives to be smuggled into Europe, just to find better living conditions.
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Shé蛇
tóu头
shōu收
qǔ取
gāo高
é额
fèi费
yòng用
hòu后
，
jiāng将
rén人
shé蛇
cáng藏
nì匿
zài在
yú渔
chuán船
de的
dǐ底
cāng舱
。
After collecting exorbitant fees, the snakehead hid the human cargo in the hold of the fishing boat.