創造“潛規則”這一概念的吳思先生說：所謂的“潛規則”，便是“隱藏在正式規則之下、卻在實際上支配著中國社會運行的規矩”。 　

什么是潛規則？就是不成文的見不得光的一些暗箱操作的規定和原則，它最早產生于人們的貪婪和私欲并且隨著時代的前進不斷發展壯大，滋生繁衍，如今已經無孔不入地滲入到社會上的各行各業中。

例句：

Unwritten or tacit rules are everywhere, and are observed to circumvent explicit rules for personal gains in officialdom. Finding a balance between such rules and the established laws and regulations has become a must for corrupt officials to get endorsement from higher authorities for what they have done on the one hand and reaping dirty gains on the other hand.

But, never has anyone delved so deep into the historical root of under-the-table conventions as Wu Si has done. His book on the subject entitled "Qian'guize" (Tacit Rules) elaborates on how such rules have had an impact on the perversity of dynastic officialdom in the past thousands of years. The book was first published in 2001 and immediately banned. Now it was reprinted.

Qian'guize, the Chinese term he coined for the concept of under-the-table rules has become extremely popular in the past decade. No one has to think twice before associating it with whatever ways he or she has to use to lubricate the channels for the things they want to get done. It is even used as a verb to describe how someone is ripped off by such rules. When we say an actress was qian'guized, it means that she had provided the director with "special service" for the particular role she wanted to play.