安利 — To Recommend Enthusiastically / To Push Something on Someone
What Does 安利 Mean?
From Amway (安利 in Chinese) — the direct sales company famous for enthusiastic, persistent product recommendations from friends. The brand became a verb: to 安利 someone means to passionately recommend something to them — a show, a song, a restaurant, a product. Unlike the Western connotation of MLM pressure, Chinese 安利 is usually positive: fan communities 安利 their idols to newcomers, friends 安利 good restaurants, content creators 安利 products they genuinely love.
Cultural Context
The Amway-to-verb transformation happened as China's recommendation economy exploded. Where 种草 (planting grass) focuses on the receiver getting hooked, 安利 focuses on the recommender's enthusiastic push. The MLM origin adds a layer of self-awareness — the person doing 安利 often knows they sound like a salesperson and does it anyway.
Similar Expressions in English
Like 'to pitch,' 'to push,' 'to evangelize about,' or 'to rec.' The Amway origin is forgotten by most users — it functions purely as a recommendation verb.
How Is It Used?
Chinese Explanation (中文解释)
来自安利（Amway）品牌，借指向他人热情推荐某事物，被安利即被种草，是网络推荐文化的核心动词。