Meaning:

“金鱼” means “goldfish,” and “系” means “type.” A widespread myth says the goldfish has a short memory that lasts only three seconds. Although scientists have proved it as untrue, people still tend to associate a bad memory and lack of attention span with goldfish. In this fast-spinning era where many people spend a lot of time on their smartphones and multitask, they forget things and are easily distracted from what they are supposed to be doing. Chinese netizens coined the term “goldfish-type” to refer to those who are forgetful and easily distracted. Some people also use it sarcastically to address those who fail to honor their promises or bring up something repeatedly.

Example:

A: 周末去哪儿玩了？

Zhōumò qù nǎr wán le？

Where did you have fun during the weekend?

B: 哪儿也没去，加班。

Nǎ r yě méi qù，jiābān。

I didn’t. I did some overtime.

A: 你的设计方案不是通过了吗？

Nǐ de shèjì fāng’àn búshì tōngguò le ma？

Hasn’t your design been approved already?

B: 没办法，遇到了金鱼系甲方，又要改这改那。

Méi bànfǎ，yùdào le jīnyúxì jiǎfāng，yòuyào gǎizhè gǎinà。

Unfortunately, the “goldfish-type” client went back on his words and wanted changes here and there.