By SigSeg - 23/12/2013 04:13 - China - Huntington Beach

Today, it’s been a semester since I came to Shanghai to study and my Chinese girlfriend nicely offered me a pear after a long exam. I cut the fruit to share it with her. When I saw her burst in tears, I understood that it was a way to announce a breakup in China. FML
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Top comments

Joshwarrior 39

My condolences op you were such a cute pear together. Look at the bright side you are learning other cultures customs which is awesome (:

315 9
Pyronic 11

it was just a misunderstanding. I'm sure she will understand.

286 4

Comments

SapphireBlueELF 18

In the Chinese culture, or rather in Mandarin, a pear is called "li" so when you cut a pear its called "fen li" which have the same sound as "being apart" or "breaking up"...

8 0
Kers3054 16

"Let me be nice and share this yummy fruit with you because I really like you." How does that mean "I want to break up."

1 5
band_geek 18

As explained several times even in another commenter's post, "li" is Chinese for "pear", and "fen li" is the phrase to use for "splitting the pear". However, "fen li" also sounds like the word for "to depart" or "to break away", so when a pear is split into two, in Chinese culture, is a way of telling the other person, "Let's break up."

3 0
Big_D_Real 12

Duct tape fixes everything.

3 0
Sosuke_Aizen 11

Did you try explaining the misunderstanding to her?

0 0
Jite_fml 5

My god you lot are getting pussish "oh my I made someone cry" like who ******* cares. Next I expect to read "I called someone a mean name and they looked sad so I felt bad"

0 5
clair_brodie 35

I am confused. Was the pear to symbolize breaking up or you cutting the pear?

0 0
ttaisimm 3

Wow this is the most Fake post in a while. Your studies in China town, California?

0 0
Dustmop 18

Why did she test you..? She seems super insecure if she goes by that superstition!

0 0
T1A2Z3 34

Fruit is a common gift in China, but an exception is made when it comes to 李 lǐ (pears) because it sounds similar to 离 lí (to separate/depart), which could symbolise a break-up. Apples are a good gift in China, but keep an eye out for Chinese pears that look very similar to apples to avoid a slip up! I think she was trying to break up with the OP

0 0