مقلب كيس الشيبسي في منار

What does “شيبسي” (shibsi) mean in Egyptian Arabic?

شيبسي (shibsi) is the everyday Egyptian word for a bag of potato chips, but it began as one brand’s name. Chipsy, Egypt’s dominant chip maker, sold so widely that its name replaced the whole category — the way English speakers say “Kleenex” for any tissue. So a كيس شيبسي, a “bag of shibsi,” means any bag of crisps, not necessarily that brand.

Chipsy began as a local company’s product, Egypt Trade, and became so dominant that PepsiCo eventually bought the brand outright; it’s reported to have some of the highest brand awareness of any snack in the country. Egyptians still reach for كيس شيبسي the way an English speaker reaches for “a bag of chips” — even to describe a rival’s bag — which is exactly what makes this clip’s prank work: hiding “the chips” from Manar needs no brand name at all.