'Shài tú' literally means 'to dry pictures'—a playful, metaphorical extension of the verb 晒 (shài), which originally means 'to sun-dry' or 'to air out'. In internet slang, it evolved to mean 'to post pictures online', especially on social media platforms like WeChat Moments, Xiaohongshu, or Weibo. The character 图 (tú) means 'picture' or 'image', so together the phrase conveys the idea of 'putting images out into the open' for others to see—just as one might hang laundry in the sun.

This term is widely used in informal, youthful, and digital contexts. It carries a casual, sometimes lighthearted or boastful connotation—people often 晒图 to share achievements (e.g., new purchases), travel moments, food, or even pets. It’s rarely used in formal writing or speech, and never for posting text-only content. While grammatically a verb, it typically appears with aspect particles (e.g., 晒了, 正在晒) or as part of compound verbs (e.g., 晒图打卡).