Meaning:

    “残” means “remaining,” and “念” means “thoughts.” A Japanese word similar to “regret,” this phrase became popular among young Chinese who are fans of Japanese anime or manga.

    Example:

    A: 你又用手机玩在线游戏了？

    Nǐ yòu yòng shǒujī wán zàixiàn yóuxì le?

    Are you playing online games on your cell phone again?

    B: 是啊，有空就忍不住想玩。

    Shì a, yǒukòng jìu rěnbùzhù xiǎng wán。

    Yeah, I just can’t help it when I have spare time.

    A: 我已经两天不玩了。前天正玩的高兴，眼看就要赢对方了，可是真残念呀，接了一个电话，通完话超时给判输了。

    Wǒ yǐjīng liǎngtiān bù wán le。Qiántiān zhèng wán de gāoxìng, yǎnkàn jìuyào yíng duìfāng le, kěshì zhēn cánniàn ya, jiē le yīgè diànhuà, tōngwánhuà chāoshí gěi pàn shū le。

    I haven’t played for two days. The day before yesterday, I was playing and about to win, my phone rang. What a shame! When I finished talking, I lost the game because I took too long to make my move.