The 11^th "Double Eleven" festival lifted its curtain at midnight this morning, and after only one minute and 36 seconds, sales on Alibaba's Tmall hit 10 billion yuan (about 1.43 billion U.S. dollars.)

People nationwide have been waiting for months for this shopping party, and there are many funny buzzwords associated with the event.

Seeding grass and pulling up grass

If you hear people say they are "seeding grass" or "pulling up grass," they are most likely not talking about gardening, but making their shopping lists and buying stuff, especially during the Double Eleven festival.

"Grass" can usually be interpreted as the strong desire to buy when it comes to online shopping.

So "seeding grass," just as its name implies, is the act of sharing the good qualities of a product to inspire others to buy it or creating one's own desire to experience or own something based on information from the outside world.

Since the grass has been seeded, the act of "pulling up grass" will occur eventually.

"Pulling up grass" means to finally make the purchase. "I've been 'seeding grass' for this lipstick for a long time, and now I'm finally pulling up the grass." This is a common sentence women say.

Eating soil

"I'm going to 'eat soil' next month."

There's no need to worry if you hear people say that. "Eating soil" is a form of self-mockery because of spending beyond your budget: They're too poor to buy food, so they have to eat soil to satisfy their hunger.

"Eating soil" usually occurs after the Double Eleven festival and it vividly describes the crazy shopping scene.

Hands-chopping people

Behind the phenomenon of eating soil, "hands-chopping people" come next.

"Hands-chopping people" are shopaholics, according to netizens. They usually spend a lot of money unconsciously, and regret it when the bill comes. They are prone to impulse buying, and the things they buy are usually pointless.

After making these impulse purchases, they say they will chop off their hands next time if they don't make rational decisions. 

Products booster

"Dai huo" literally means "products booster." It refers to the phenomenon of celebrities and public figures intentionally or unintentionally helping to boost sales. 

The use of stars for a certain product will often lead to imitation by consumers and will help popularize the product. On Taobao, product descriptions often say they are the "same style" as a certain star.

Curse of Double 11

This refers to an unexplained phenomenon that occurs when items somehow disappear or break before Double Eleven, making it more reasonable to buy replacements.

Double 11 non-staff

"Double 11 non-staff" refers to those who do not take advantage of any discounts, do not have anything they want to buy or do nothing while others are busy buying stuff.

Shopping-blind person

This is a person who actively participates in shopping after hearing that there is a discount on November 11, but doesn't know how much cheaper the item is and eventually buys whatever he wants.