wūyā hē shuǐ
乌鸦 喝 水
Zhèyìnián xiàtiān lǎo yě búxiàyǔ，
这一年 夏天 老 也 不下雨，
It didn’t rain in the summer this year.
xiǎohé lǐ hé shuǐtáng lǐ de shuǐ dōu bèi shàigān le。
小河 里 和 水塘 里 的 水 都 被 晒干 了。
the river and pond are dry.
Yìzhī wūyā fēilái fēiqù, kěshì méi yǒu zhǎodào yìdī shuǐ hē.
一只 乌鸦 飞来 飞去，可是 没有 找到 一滴 水 喝。
There is a crow flying to and fro to find water, but not even a drop is to be found.
Wūyā zhànzài kū shùzhī shàng xiējiǎo, kǒukě de tèbié lìhai.
乌鸦 站在 枯 树枝 上 歇脚， 口渴 的 特别 厉害。
He takes a break on a dead branch, feeling very thirsty.
Wūyā xiǎng: “yàoshì zài zhǎo búdào shuǐ hē, wǒ huì kěsǐ de!”
乌鸦 想：“ 要是 再 找 不到 水 喝，我 会 渴死 的！”
The crow thinks he might die if he doesn’t find water.
Wūyā bùxiǎng jiù zhèyang kěsǐ,
乌鸦 不想 就 这样 渴死，
He doesn’t want to die this way,
tā shǐchū quánshēn de lìqi jìxù xiàngqián fēiqù, qīwàng néng zhǎodào yìdiǎnr shuǐ hē.
它 使出 全身 的 力气继续向前 飞去， 期望 能 找到 一点儿 水 喝。
so he goes on flying in hopes of finding some water.
Wūyā fēiya fēiya, hūrán tā kànjiàn qiánmian yǒu yí ge fāliàng de dōngxi,
乌鸦 飞呀 飞呀，忽然 它 看见 前面 有 一 个 发亮 的 东西，
Suddenly he sees something shining ahead,
yuánlái shì yìzhī zhuāngzhe shuǐ de píngzi
原来 是 一只 装着 水 的 瓶子。
and it’s a bottle of water.
Wūyā gāoxìng jí le, tā lìkè fēidào píngzi gēnqián, .
乌鸦 高兴 极了，它立刻飞到 瓶子 跟前，
The crow is excited, and he quickly flies to the bottle.
Zǐxì yíkàn yòu shǎyǎn le, pínglǐ zhǐyǒu bànpíngshuǐ,
仔细一看 又 傻眼 了，瓶里 只有 半瓶水，
He is disappointed after taking a look at the bottle because it’s only half-full with water,
érqiě píngkǒu hěnxiǎo, zuǐ shēn bújìnqù, gēnběn hē búdào shuǐ.
而且 瓶口 很小，嘴 伸 不进去， 根本 喝 不到 水。
and the bottle’s neck is too narrow and small for his mouth to reach inside.
Zěnme bàn ne? wūyā xiǎng a xiǎng a!
怎么 办 呢？乌鸦 想 啊 想 啊！
“What shall I do?” The crow thinks the problem over and over,
Zhèshí tā kàndào dìshang yǒu xǔduō xiǎoshízi.
这时 它 看到 地上 有 许多 小石子。
and then he sees lots of tiny stones on the ground.
Wūyā zhōngyú xiǎngchū le bànfa！
乌鸦 终于 想出 了 办法!
Finally a good idea comes into in his mind!
Wūyā bǎ xiǎoshízi yí ge yí ge de xié qǐlái diūjìn píngzilǐ,
乌鸦 把 小石子 一 个 一 个 的 撷 起来丢进 瓶子里，
He throws those tiny stones into the bottle,
píngzilǐ de xiǎoshízi yuèlái yuèduō, shuǐmiàn mànman shēnggāo.
瓶子里 的 小石子 越来 越多， 水面 慢慢 升高。
and the water begins to rise higher and higher.
Wūyā zhōngyú hēdào shuǐ le!
乌鸦 终于 喝到 水 了！
Finally, he is able to drink it with happiness!
Vocabulary:
1. 乌鸦(wūyā): the crow. In Chinese culture crows are usually considered bad luck because of their black feathers.
Wūyā hěn hēi.
乌鸦 很 黑。
The crow is very black.
2. 喝(hē): to drink.
Xiàtiān yào duō hēshuǐ.
夏天 要 多 喝水。
We should drink more water in the summer.
3. 晒干(shàigān): to became dry in the sun
Chuángdān shàigān le.
床单 晒干 了。
The bed sheets become dry in the sun.
4. 傻眼(shǎyǎn): to describe being shocked into dullness by something.
Xiǎomíng kàndào fēnshù shǎyǎn le.
小明 看到 分数 傻眼 了。
Xiaoming was surprised into speechless by his scores.
Exercise:
1. Which sentence is correct?
A. Xiǎohóng xià shǎyǎn le.
小红 吓 傻眼 了。
Xiaohong was greatly surprised and frightened.
B. Zhuōzi shǎyǎn le.
桌子 傻眼 了。
The desk was surprised.
C. Wǒde shū shǎyǎn le.
我的 书 傻眼 了。
My book was surprised.
2. What will乌鸦(wūyā) bring to people in Chinese culture?
A. Money.
B. Good luck.
C. Bad luck.
Chinese for Kids
General Chinese (Beginner Level)
General Chinese (Intermediate Level)