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The phrase is taken from a TV series called "Arrow". In the beginning of the first episode Oliver says: "The name of the island they found me on is Lian Yu. It's Mandarin for purgatory."

I've never seen a sentence like this one and don't even know how to google it.

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    煉獄 in Wiktionary
    – Henry
    May 14, 2021 at 10:11
  • We may have our first question there that is about the grammar that may be used for asking single word requests, but isn't a single word request. :)
    – Kaz
    May 14, 2021 at 16:26
  • Hm I closed based on belonging on ELL, but it gives the "not enough focus" message which frankly I don't understand why Cascabel and Edwin would have chosen that close reason.
    – Azor Ahai -him-
    May 14, 2021 at 18:53

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"It's Mandarin for Purgatory" = "in the Mandarin language the name Lian Yu means purgatory".

Mandarin is one of the Chinese languages. Purgatory is a place where the souls of the dead are purified (by pain) before they go to heaven, in Catholic teachings.

"X is the foreign language word for Y" is a common construction, and Lian Yu literally means purgatory in Mandarin. It's a way of conveying that the island is not a nice place.

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    liànyù literally means purgatory in Mandarin
    – Henry
    May 14, 2021 at 10:13
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    @Henry though, note that it would work just fine as a semi-humorous statement even if it weren't literally accurate.
    – Tiercelet
    May 14, 2021 at 17:48

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