Updated July 2026
What does 已读乱回 mean?
已读乱回 (yǐ dú luàn huí) means read it and replied with nonsense in internet Chinese slang. Reading a message and answering something absurd or unrelated. Often it is deliberate — a joking dodge, or a soft way to decline — and it also describes two people whose replies never quite meet. Literally, it means "read it, replied chaotically".
Hear it explained
A 30-second take on 已读乱回 — what it means, where it came from, and how to use it.
You send a real question. They read it. They reply with a photo of a cat. That is 已读乱回, yǐ dú luàn huí — read it, answered chaotically. 我问他几点到，他回我一张猫的照片，已读乱回. It is a complaint, but an affectionate one. Usually.
Example
我问他几点到，他回我一张猫的照片，已读乱回。
Wǒ wèn tā jǐ diǎn dào, tā huí wǒ yì zhāng māo de zhàopiàn, yǐ dú luàn huí.
I asked when he was arriving and he sent a cat photo — read it and replied with nonsense.
Where 已读乱回 comes from
Built from 已读, the read receipt every messaging app shows, plus 乱回, to reply at random. It names a problem that could not exist before read receipts did, which is why it felt instantly recognisable.
Related slang
Calling someone a bot — mechanical, inflexible, no warmth in how they respond. This is an insult, not gentle teasing; it stings in a way the English "NPC" often does not.
The moment the mood flips. Usually said as a pair: something good, 嘻嘻; then the catch, 不嘻嘻. 吃了一顿大餐，嘻嘻；上完体重秤，不嘻嘻.
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