口头语 (kǒu tóu yǔ) — pet phrase; habitual expression; stock phrase; spoken (colloquial) language (versus written language)

Definition

Examples

• 他的口头语是“没问题”，什么都说没问题。
  Tā de kǒu tóu yǔ shì "méi wèn tí", shén me dōu shuō méi wèn tí.
  His pet phrase is “no problem” — he says no problem about everything.
• 写文章时要少用口头语，多用正式的书面语。
  Xiě wén zhāng shí yào shǎo yòng kǒu tóu yǔ, duō yòng zhèng shì de shū miàn yǔ.
  When writing articles, you should use fewer colloquial expressions and more formal written language.
• 每个人都有自己的口头语，有些人的口头语很有意思。
  Měi gè rén dōu yǒu zì jǐ de kǒu tóu yǔ, yǒu xiē rén de kǒu tóu yǔ hěn yǒu yì si.
  Everyone has their own pet phrase, and some people's pet phrases are very interesting.