xiǎomāo zhòng yú
小 猫 种鱼
A Kitten Planted Fish
Yǒu yìzhī cōngmíng de xiǎomāo, zǒngshì xǐhuan pǎoláipǎoqù.
有 一只 聪明 的 小猫， 总是 喜欢 跑来跑去。
There was a clever kitten who liked trotting up and down.
Chūntiān lái le, māma dài tā qù zhòngcài.
春天 来 了，妈妈 带 他 去 种菜。
When spring came, his mother took him to plant vegetables.
Yígè xīngqī hòu, xiǎomāo fāxiàn cài fāyá le.
一个 星期 后， 小猫 发现 菜 发芽了。
A week later, the kitten found the vegetable seeds have sprouted.
Yúshì tā wèn māma wèishénme zhǒngzi huì fāyá.
于是 他 问 妈妈 为什么 种子 会 发芽。
So he asked his mother how the seeds were able to sprout.
Māma gàosu tā zhǒngzi xīshōu le nítǔ lǐ de shuǐfèn hé yíngyǎng,
妈妈 告诉 他 种子 吸收 了泥土里的 水分 和 营养，
Mother told him that seeds can absorb the water and nutrients in the soil,
Ránhòu jiù huì fāyá, zài zhǎng yèzi, zuìhòu huì jiéchū hěnduō cài.
然后 就 会 发芽，再长 叶子，最后 会 结出 很多 菜。
Then they will bud and sprout leaves. And at last they will yield many vegetables.
Xiǎomāo xiǎng: rúguǒ wǒ bǎ yú zhòng dào nítǔ lǐ, huìbuhuì zhǎngchū hěnduō yú ne?
小猫 想： 如果 我 把 鱼 种 到 泥土 里，会不会 长出 很多 鱼 呢？
The kitten thought: if I plant fish into the soil, will they yield many fish?
Dìèrtiān, xiǎomāo ná le jǐ tiáo yú, zhòngzài le tǔlǐ.
第二天， 小猫 拿 了几 条 鱼， 种在 了 土里。
The next day, the kitten took some fish and planted them in the soil.
Xiǎomāo měitiān dōu jiāoshuǐ, yígè xīngqī guòqù le, kěshì yú hái méiyǒu fāyá.
小猫 每天 都 浇水， 一个 星期 过去 了，可是 鱼 还 没有 发芽。
He watered the fish every day. A week later, the fish still didn’t germinate.
Xiǎomāo hěn zhāojí, wākāi nítǔ yí kàn. Wa, yú quánbù làn diào le, zhǐ shèngxià le gǔtóu.
小猫 很 着急， 挖开 泥土一 看。 哇，鱼 全部 烂 掉 了，只 剩下 了 骨头。
The kitten was very anxious and dug out the fish to have a look.
Xiǎomāo hěn qíguài yě hěn shāngxīn, jiù qù wèn māma.
小猫 很 奇怪 也 很 伤心， 就去 问 妈妈。
The kitten was very curious and sad, so he asked his mother.
“Wèishénme wǒ bǎ yú zhòng dào nítǔ lǐ búhuì zhǎngchū yú?”
“为什么 我 把 鱼 种 到 泥土里 不会 长出 鱼？”
” I have planted fish in the soil but why didn’t it grow out fish?”
Māma xiàole, tā shuō: “Yú shì dòngwù, bùnéng zhòng de.
妈妈 笑了，她 说：“ 鱼 是 动物， 不能 种 的。
Mom laughed and said, “Fish are animals and cannot been planted.
Zhǐyǒu zhíwù cái kěyǐ zhòngzhí. Bǐrú fānqié, huángguā, xīguā děng.”
只有 植物 才 可以 种植。 比如 番茄、黄瓜、 西瓜 等。”
Only the plants can been planted, for example, tomato, cucumber, watermelon and so on.”
Xiǎomāo míngbai le zhège dàolǐ, tā xiǎng: jīnhòu wǒ yào duō xuéxí, cái huì zhīdào hěnduō zhīshí.
小猫明白了这个 道理，他 想： 今后 我 要 多学习，才 会 知道 很多 知识。
The kitten came to understand this truth. He thought, from now on I need to learn more so that I can obtain more knowledge.
Vocabulary
1. 发芽 (fāyá) v. to germinate
“发 (fā)” means to grow out and “芽 (yá)” means bud.
Dàole chūntiān, cǎo dōu fāyá le.
到了 春天， 草 都 发芽 了。
When spring comes, the grass germinates.
2. 明白 (míngbai) v. to understand
“明 (míng)” means clear and “白 (bái)” literally means white.
Tā zhèngzài jìnlì nòng míngbái tāde yìsi.
他 正在 尽力 弄 明白 她的 意思。
He is trying his best to understand her meaning.
3. 小猫 (xiǎomāo): n. kitten
4. 种 (zhòng): v. to plant
5. 春天 (chūntiān): n. spring
6. 伤心 (shāngxīn): adj. sad
7. 学习 (xuéxí): v. to learn
Chinese for Kids
HSK Test
General Chinese (Beginner Level)
General Chinese (Intermediate Level)