Chinese fire drill
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Chinese fire drill
Where it comes from
Perhaps from the World War I era, from the former Western use of Chinese as an ethnic and racial slur; now used only as a festive exclamation.
noun Chinese fire drills
- A prank performed while stopped in a car at a red light, and where each passenger, including the driver, shouts "Chinese fire drill", exits the vehicle, runs at least once around it, then re-enters, each taking a different seat.
-
A silly, pointless exercise.
Similar: fire drill, Polish fire drill
Translations
Every language
noun prank
| Español | simulacro de incendio de China |
|---|
Talk about this word "Chinese fire drill." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/chinese%20fire%20drill. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. Chinese fire drill. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/chinese%20fire%20drill "Chinese fire drill." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/chinese%20fire%20drill.Cite this
@misc{chinese_fire_drill_2026,
title = {Chinese fire drill},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/chinese%20fire%20drill},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
