pak pai

English

Alternative forms

  • pak-pai

Etymology

From Cantonese 白牌車 / 白牌车 (baak6 paai4-2 ce1), literally ‘white numberplate’.

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /pakˈpʌɪ/

Noun

pak pai (plural pak pai or pak pais)

  1. (now historical) A car used as an illegal taxi in Hong Kong. [from 20th c.]
    • 1977, John Le Carré, The Honourable Schoolboy, Folio Society, published 2010, page 471:
      He took pak-pais, knowing they were less under the thumb of the police.

Synonyms

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