Meaning:

    “妈” means “mom,” and “癌” means “cancer.” A term coined by Chinese netizens, it has nothing to do with the serious medical condition. Instead, it’s a metaphor used to describe those who are so considerate and detail-minded that they treat their friends or colleagues in the way a mom takes care of her children. Unfortunately, other people may not like it. The more traditional Chinese expression for this is “事儿妈” (a mom with many trivial things to worry about).

    Example:

    A: 明天可能会下雨，别忘了带雨伞。

    Míngtiān kěnéng huì xiàyǔ, bié wàng le dài yǔsǎn。

    It may rain tomorrow, so don’t forget to bring your umbrella.

    B: 好的。

    Hǎo de。

    Okay.

    A: 你这段时间脸色不太好，是不是身体不舒服？

    Nǐ zhèduàn shíjiān liǎnsè bù tài hǎo, shìbùshì shēntǐ bù shūfú?

    You don’t look well these days. Are you feeling under the weather?

    B: 可能我没休息好。

    Kěnéng wǒ méi xīuxī hǎo。

    Perhaps I didn’t get enough sleep.

    A: 晚上早点睡，别老玩游戏。

    Wǎnshàng zǎodiǎn shuì, bié lǎo wán yóuxì。

    You should go to bed earlier, and don’t sit playing games for too long.

    B: 我发现你真有妈癌。

    Wǒ fāxiàn nǐ zhēn yǒu mā’ái。

    You are kind of like a nagging mom.