China growing trend among couples has them calling each other ‘teammate’ or ‘roommate’

Married couples in China are referring to each other as “teammate” and “roommate” to avoid being too schmaltzy, but single people are shunning the trend, branding it confusing and “pretentious”.The special titles married people invent for their partners recently triggered a heated debate on mainland social media.Some people, especially women, preferred to call their spouses “teammate” or “roommate”.A couple bond on a mountainside. The new naming trend stresses practicality over romance. Photo: Getty ImagesThey said they found traditional titles such as ai ren, or “lover” in English, and lao gong/lao po, meaning “hubby” and “wifey”, sounded too intimate and cheesy.It is said that the words “teammate” and “roommate”, or dui you and shi you in Chinese, are the counterparts of “partner” in English and were first used by Chinese living overseas.However, unlike the word “partner” used in the Western context, which can conveniently refer to romantic relationships regardless of marriage status or gender, Chinese couples use “teammate” and roommate” to imply a comrade-like relationship with their spouses.The overseas Chinese couples are considered more like comrades, as they need to work harder together to survive in a strange land.A couple holding hands on the banks of the River Seine in Paris, France. Photo: Getty Images