Meaning:

    “碰” means to “crash” or “collide,” and “瓷” means “porcelain.” This term refers to the practice of intentionally throwing oneself onto or in front of a driving car to extort compensation out of the driver.Originating from Beijing dialect, the term may have come from antique sellers along the street who would lay out their porcelain collection well into the street so that pedestrians may crash them unintentionally and have to pay compensation. They used “porcelain” to set the trap because it’s fragile and could be costly.

    Example:

    A: 你怎么迟到了？

    Nǐ zěnme chídào le?

    Why are you late?

    B: 我早晨上班的路上遇到了一个碰瓷的。

    Wǒ zǎochén shàngbān de lùshàng yùdào le yīge pèngcí de。

    On my way to work this morning, some guy threw himself in front of my car and tried to blackmail me, asking for compensation.

    A: 怎么解决的？

    Zěnme jiějué de?

    How did you get out of it?

    B: 我叫了警察，然后那个人就跑了。

    Wǒ jiào le jǐngchá, ránhòu nàge rén jìu pǎo le。

    I called the police, and the guy ran away.