PDA and… dog food (referring to displays of affection between couples).

"Cẩu lương" is a transliteration of the Chinese word 狗粮 (gǒu liáng), which currently has three meanings:

a. "Cẩu" means dog, and "lương" means food, corresponding to the term "quǎn liáng" (犬粮): dog food, which the British and Americans call "dog food," and the French call "nourriture pour chien"... This is a special processed food for dogs, popular in the last 60 years or so, usually in the form of pellets. From ancient times, the question of what to feed dogs was analyzed by the Roman poet Virgil in his work "Bucolics" (37 BC).

b. "Gou Liang" is a term used in video games in China. The Moegirlpedia encyclopedia states that gamers have used this term in card-collecting games. "Gou Liang" refers to materials that can be obtained in large quantities and are of low value, similar to dog food.

c. "Dog's love" is a term referring to the display of affection in front of people who are single. This is a common slang term on the internet. In China, people who are single are called "single dog" (单身狗) or "single pond" (单身汪). These two terms are just humorous ways netizens refer to them, as "dog" has long been considered a man's best friend, not simply an animal.

The slang term "cẩu lương" (狗粮) has emerged in the last 10 years, originating from Chinese romance films and novels before being introduced to Vietnam. Young Vietnamese people use the term "cẩu lương" and then adapt it into a synonym, "cơm chó" (dog food). Besides "cẩu lương," there are other related terms such as:

"Distributing dog food" (撒狗粮, sā gǒu liáng) and "spreading dog food" (发狗粮, fā gǒu liáng) in the sense of scattering/giving food to dogs, implying that couples displaying affection in public is like distributing/giving food to single people. This behavior may be unintentional, but if done intentionally, "spreading dog food" means teasing single people, making them envious and wishing for such affection.

Seeing a couple's affection in front of them is called "kàn cẩu lương" (看狗粮, kàn gǒu liáng); while feeling (or being forced to see) someone else's love is called "ngật cẩu lương" (吃狗粮, chī gǒu liáng): "eating dog food" or "mãi cẩu lương" (买狗粮, mǎi gǒu liáng): "buying dog food".

In general, the slang mentioned above is just internet language, used by young people to exchange with each other on Zalo, TikTok, Facebook, and other social media sites. It should be kept at the level of joking, because going too far can lead to "dog abuse" (虐狗, nüè gǒu), which means mistreating "lonely dogs," also known as single-person han (单身汉, dānshēnhàn) or single-person biē (单身鳖, dānshēn biē): solitary turtles.

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/lat-leo-chu-nghia-cau-luong-va-com-cho-185230915231552008.htm