I love it when I find a longer story that’s suitable for beginning readers. This one, which is either a tale that reminds us what happens when you try to be something you’re not, or a tale that reminds us that men should never be allowed to give each other fashion advice, definitely fits the […]
今天，真是个野餐的好日子。 猪先生精心打扮着自己，他期待着猪小姐能与他一起去野餐。
“呵呵，真希望她会说‘我愿意’啊。 嗯，我再摘朵花送给她，一定能够打动她！”
路上，猪先生遇到了他的朋友狐狸。狐狸听说了野餐的事，就说：“让我给你一个建议，把我美丽的尾巴借去吧。瞧，你看上去有多聪明啊，猪小姐肯定会喜欢的。” 猪先生很满意。
接着，他又遇到了他的朋友狮子。狮子听说了野餐的事，就说：“让我给你一个建议，把我美丽的头发借去吧。 瞧，你看上去有多威猛啊，猪小姐肯定会喜欢的。” 猪先生很满意。
后来，他又遇到他的朋友斑马。斑马听说了野餐的事，就说：“让我给你一个建议，把我美丽的条纹借去吧。 瞧，你看上去有多英俊啊，猪小姐肯定会喜欢的。” 猪先生很满意。他觉得自己从来没有这样英俊过。
终于来到猪小姐家了，猪先生激动地敲了敲门。“能有幸请你一起去野餐吗？”他问。
猪小姐吓了一大跳：“噢，不行！你是哪儿来的妖怪呀？你要是再不走开，我就去叫猪先生了，他会来收拾你的！”
猪先生连忙往回跑。一路上，他把条纹还给了斑马，把头发还给了狮子，把尾巴还给了狐狸。然后，他又赶回到猪小姐的家，再一次摁响了门铃。
“能有幸请你一起去野餐吗？”他又问。
“啊呀，猪先生！” 猪小姐叫道，“看到你我真是太高兴啦，我很愿意跟你一起去野餐。刚才来了个丑八怪，就站在我的院子里，可把我吓坏啦。”
一路上，猪小姐把那个丑八怪的故事仔细地讲给了猪先生。她英俊的朋友猪先生，则一直满怀同情地听着。这真是一个去野餐的好日子啊。
Hover a word for its pinyin & meaning; click to pin it.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 今天 | jīn tiān | today; the present time; now |
| 真是 | zhēn shi | indeed; truly; (coll.) (used to express disapproval, annoyance etc) |
| 个 | gě | used in 自個兒|自个儿[zi4 ge3 r5]; variant of 個|个[ge4] |
| 野餐 | yě cān | picnic; to have a picnic |
| 的 | de | of; ~'s (possessive particle); (used after an attribute when it modifies a noun); (used at the end of a declarative sentence for emphasis); (used after a noun, verb or adjective to… |
| 好日子 | hǎo rì zi | auspicious day; good day; happy life |
| 猪 | zhū | hog; pig; swine; CL:口[kou3],頭|头[tou2] |
| 先生 | xiān sheng | teacher; gentleman; sir; mister (Mr.); husband; (dialect) doctor; CL:位[wei4] |
| 精心 | jīng xīn | with utmost care; fine; meticulous; detailed |
| 打 | dá | (loanword) dozen; Taiwan pr. [da3] |
| 扮 | bǎn | to disguise oneself as; to play (a role) |
| 着 | zhāo | variant of 著|着[zhao1]; a move in chess (Taiwan pr. [zhuo2]); trick; tactic; (dialect) okay; all right; (dialect) to put in; to add |
| 自己 | zì jǐ | oneself; (attributive) one's own |
| 他 | tā | (third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he; him; his; (bound form) other; another; some other (as in 他日[ta1 ri4] and 他人[ta1 ren2]) |
| 期 | qī | variant of 期[qi1]; period; cycle; a period of time; phase; stage; classifier for issues of a periodical, courses of study; time; term; period; to hope; Taiwan pr. [qi2] |
| 待 | dǎi | to stay; to remain |
| 小 | xiǎo | small; tiny; few; young |
| 姐 | jiě | older sister |
| 能 | Néng | surname Neng |
| 与 | yú | variant of 歟|欤[yu2] |
| 一起 | yī qǐ | (in) the same place; together; in company (with); altogether; in total; an instance of; a case of (murder, accident, dispute etc) |
| 去 | qù | to go; to go to (a place); (of a time etc) last; just passed; to send; to remove; to get rid of; to reduce; to be apart from in space or time; to die (euphemism); to play (a part);… |
| 呵 | he | to breathe (out); to scold; (interjection) oh; ha |
| 真 | zhēn | really; truly; indeed; real; true; genuine |
| 希 | xī | to hope; to admire; variant of 稀[xi1] |
| 望 | wàng | full moon; to hope; to expect; to visit; to gaze (into the distance); to look towards; towards; 15th day of month (lunar calendar); old variant of 望[wang4] |
| 她 | tā | she |
| 会 | huì | can; to have the skill; to know how to; to be likely to; to be sure to; to meet; to get together; meeting; gathering; (suffix) union; group; association; (bound form) a moment (Tai… |
| 说 | shuì | to persuade; variant of 說|说[shuo1] |
| 我 | wǒ | I; me; my |
| 愿 | yuàn | honest and prudent; variant of 願|愿[yuan4]; (bound form) wish; hope; desire; to be willing; to wish (that sth may happen); may ...; vow; pledge |
| 意 | yì | (bound form) idea; thought; meaning; sense; (bound form) intention; feeling; inclination; state of mind; (bound form) Italy (abbr. for 意大利[Yi4 da4 li4]) |
| 啊 | ā | interjection of surprise; Ah!; Oh! |
| 嗯 | ēn | (a groaning sound) |
| 再 | zài | again; once more; re-; further; beyond this point of time; (before an adjective) more; then (after sth, and not until then); no matter how ... (followed by an adjective or verb, an… |
| 摘 | zhāi | to take; to pick (flowers, fruit etc); to pluck; to remove; to take off (glasses, hat etc); to select; to pick out; to borrow money at a time of urgent need |
| 朵 | duó | flower; fig. item on both sides |
| 花 | Huā | surname Hua; old variant of 花[hua1]; variant of 花[hua1]; flower; blossom; also pr. [wei3] |
| 送 | sòng | to send; to deliver; to transmit; to give (as a present); to see (sb) off; to accompany; to go along with |
| 给 | gěi | to; for; for the benefit of; to give; to allow; to do sth (for sb); (grammatical equivalent of 被); (grammatical equivalent of 把); (sentence intensifier) |
| 一定 | yī dìng | surely; certainly; definitely; fixed; settled; a certain ...; a given ... |
| 够 | gòu | enough (sufficient); enough (too much); (coll.) (before adj.) really; (coll.) to reach by stretching out |
| 打动 | dǎ dòng | to move (to pity); arousing (sympathy); touching |
| 路上 | lù shang | on the road; on the way; en route |
| 遇 | Yù | surname Yu |
| 到了 | dào liǎo | at last; finally; in the end |
| 朋友 | péng you | friend; CL:個|个[ge4],位[wei4] |
| 狐 | hú | fox |
| 狸 | lí | (狐狸) fox |
| 听说 | tīng shuō | to hear (sth said); one hears (that); hearsay; listening and speaking |
| 了 | le | (completed action marker); (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now); (modal particle intensifying preceding clause); (bound form) clear in one's mind; to understand clearly |
| 事 | shì | matter; thing; item; work; affair; CL:件[jian4],樁|桩[zhuang1],回[hui2] |
| 就 | jìu | (after a suppositional clause) in that case; then; (after a clause of action) as soon as; immediately after; (same as 就是[jiu4 shi4]) merely; nothing else but; simply; just; precise… |
| 让 | ràng | to yield; to permit; to let sb do sth; to have sb do sth; to make sb (feel sad etc); by (indicates the agent in a passive clause, like 被[bei4]) |
| 你 | nǐ | you (informal, as opposed to courteous 您[nin2]); you (Note: In Taiwan, 妳 is used to address females, but in mainland China, it is not commonly used. Instead, 你 is used to address both males and females.) |
| 一个 | yī ge | a; an; one; the whole (afternoon, summer vacation etc) |
| 建 | jiàn | to establish; to found; to set up; to build; to construct |
| 议 | yǐ | to comment on; to suggest |
| 把 | bǎ | to hold; to grasp; to hold a baby in position to help it urinate or defecate; handlebar; classifier: handful, bundle, bunch; classifier for things with handles; (used to put the ob… |
| 美 | Měi | (bound form) the Americas (abbr. for 美洲[Mei3 zhou1]); (bound form) USA (abbr. for 美國|美国[Mei3 guo2]) |
| 丽 | lǐ | used in place names, notably 高麗|高丽[Gao1 li2] and 麗水|丽水[Li2 shui3] |
| 尾 | wěi | tail; remainder; remnant; extremity; sixth of the 28 constellations; classifier for fish |
| 巴 | Bā | Ba, a state during the Zhou dynasty (in present-day Chongqing and the eastern part of Sichuan); the east of Sichuan and Chongqing Municipality; surname Ba; (bound form) abbr. for 巴… |
| 借 | jiè | to borrow; (used in combination with 給|给[gei3] or 出[chu1] etc) to lend; to make use of; to avail oneself of; (sometimes followed by 著|着[zhe5]) by; with; variant of 借[jie4] |
| 吧 | bā | bar (loanword) (serving drinks, or providing Internet access etc); to puff (on a pipe etc); (onom.) bang; abbr. for 貼吧|贴吧[tie1 ba1] |
| 瞧 | qiáo | to look at; to see; to see (a doctor); to visit |
| 看上去 | kàn shang qu | it would appear; it seems (that) |
| 有 | yǒu | to have; there is; (bound form) having; with; -ful; -ed; -al (as in 有意[you3 yi4] intentional) |
| 多 | duō | many; much; more; a lot of; too many; in excess; (after a numeral) ... odd; how (to what extent) (Taiwan pr. [duo2]); (bound form) multi-; poly- |
| 聪明 | cōng ming | intelligent; clever; bright; acute (of sight and hearing) |
| 肯定 | kěn dìng | to be certain; to be positive; assuredly; definitely; to give recognition; to affirm; affirmative (answer) |
| 喜欢 | xǐ huan | to like; to be fond of |
| 很 | hěn | very; quite; (also, often used before an adjective without intensifying its meaning, i.e. as a meaningless syntactic element) |
| 满 | Mǎn | Manchu ethnic group |
| 接着 | jiē zhe | to catch and hold on; to continue; to go on to do sth; to follow; to carry on; then; after that; subsequently; to proceed; to ensue; in turn; in one's turn |
| 又 | yòu | (once) again; also; both... and...; and yet; (used for emphasis) anyway |
| 狮 | ||
| 子 | zǐ | son; child; seed; egg; small thing; 1st earthly branch: 11 p.m.–1 a.m., midnight, 11th solar month (7th December to 5th January), year of the rat; viscount, fourth of five orders o… |
| 头 | tóu | head; hair style; the top; end; beginning or end; a stub; remnant; chief; boss; side; aspect; first; leading; classifier for pigs or livestock; CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 发 | fā | to send out; to show (one's feeling); to issue; to develop; to make a bundle of money; classifier for gunshots (rounds); hair; Taiwan pr. [fa3] |
| 威 | wei | power; prestige |
| 猛 | měng | ferocious; fierce; violent; brave; suddenly; abrupt; (slang) awesome |
| 后 | Hòu | surname Hou; back; behind; rear; afterwards; after; later; post- |
| 来 | lái | to come; (used as a substitute for a more specific verb); hither (directional complement for motion toward the speaker, as in 回來|回来[hui2 lai5]); ever since (as in 自古以來|自古以来[zi4 gu3… |
| 到 | dào | to reach; to arrive; to leave for; to go to; to (a place); until (a time); up to (a point); (verb complement indicating arriving at a place or reaching a point); considerate; thoug… |
| 斑马 | bān mǎ | zebra; CL:匹[pi3] |
| 条纹 | tiáo wén | stripe |
| 英 | Yīng | United Kingdom; British; England; English; abbr. for 英國|英国[Ying1 guo2] |
| 俊 | jǔn | old |
| 觉得 | jué de | to think that ...; to feel that ...; to feel (uncomfortable etc) |
| 从 | cóng | variant of 從|从[cong2]; surname Cong |
| 没有 | méi yǒu | haven't; hasn't; doesn't exist; to not have; to not be |
| 这 | zhè | (pronoun) this; these; (bound form) this; the (followed by a noun); (bound form) this; these (followed by a classifier) (in this sense, commonly pr. [zhei4], esp. in Beijing) |
| 样 | yàng | manner; pattern; way; appearance; shape; classifier: kind, type |
| 过 | Guō | surname Guo |
| 终 | zhong | end |
| 于 | Yú | surname Yu; (of time or place) in; at; on; (indicating any indirect relation) to; toward; vis-à-vis; with regard to; for; (indicating a source) from; out of; (used in comparison) than; (used i… |
| 家 | jiā | used in 傢伙|家伙[jia1 huo5] and 傢俱|家俱[jia1 ju4]; home; family; (polite) my (sister, uncle etc); classifier for families or businesses; refers to the philosophical schools of pre-Han China; noun suffix for a specialist in some act… |
| 激 | ji | to arouse; to excite; sharp; violent |
| 动 | dòng | (of sth) to move; to set in movement; to displace; to touch; to make use of; to stir (emotions); to alter; abbr. for 動詞|动词[dong4 ci2], verb |
| 地 | de | -ly; structural particle: used before a verb or adjective, linking it to preceding modifying adverbial adjunct |
| 敲 | qiāo | to hit; to strike; to tap; to rap; to knock; to rip sb off; to overcharge |
| 敲门 | qiāo mén | to knock on a door |
| 有幸 | yǒu xìng | fortunately |
| 请 | qǐng | to ask; to invite; please (do sth); to treat (to a meal etc); to request |
| 吗 | má | (coll.) what? |
| 问 | wèn | to ask; to inquire |
| 吓 | xiǎ | to scare; to threaten; (interjection showing astonishment) |
| 一 | yī | one; single; a (article); as soon as; entire; whole; all; throughout; "one" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 1); also pr. [yao1] for greater clarity when spelling out … |
| 大 | dà | big; large; great; older (than another person); eldest (as in 大姐[da4 jie3]); greatly; freely; fully; (dialect) father; (dialect) uncle (father's brother) |
| 跳 | tiào | to jump; to hop; to skip over; to bounce; to palpitate |
| 噢 | ||
| 不行 | bù xíng | won't do; be out of the question; be no good; not work; not be capable |
| 是 | shì | to be (followed by substantives only); correct; right; true; (respectful acknowledgement of a command) very well; (adverb for emphatic assertion); variant of 是[shi4] |
| 哪 | nǎ | how; which |
| 儿 | ér | child; son |
| 妖 | ||
| 怪 | guǎi | odd; strange; uncanny; to find strange; to regard as odd; (coll.) somewhat; rather |
| 呀 | yā | ah (used to express surprise); (onom.) creaking |
| 要是 | yào shi | (coll.) if |
| 不 | bù | no; not so; (bound form) not; un- |
| 走开 | zǒu kāi | to leave; to walk away; to beat it; to move aside |
| 叫 | jiào | to shout; to call; to order; to ask; to be called; by (indicates agent in the passive mood); variant of 叫[jiao4] |
| 收 | shōu | to receive; to accept; to collect; to put away; to restrain; to stop; in care of (used on address line after name) |
| 拾 | shè | to ascend in light steps |
| 连忙 | lián máng | promptly; at once |
| 往 | wǎng | to go (in a direction); to; towards; (of a train) bound for; past; previous; old variant of 往[wang3] |
| 回 | Huí | Hui ethnic group (Chinese Muslims); to curve; to return; to revolve; variant of 迴|回[hui2] |
| 跑 | páo | (of an animal) to paw (the ground) |
| 一路上 | yī lù shàng | along the way; the whole way; (fig.) the whole time |
| 还 | Huán | surname Huan |
| 然 | rán | correct; right; so; thus; like this; -ly |
| 赶 | gǎn | to overtake; to catch up with; to hurry; to rush; to try to catch (the bus etc); to drive (cattle etc) forward; to drive (sb) away; to avail oneself of (an opportunity); until; by … |
| 回到 | huí dào | to return to |
| 一次 | yī cì | first; first time; once; (math.) linear (of degree one) |
| 摁 | ||
| 响 | xiǎng | echo; sound; noise; to make a sound; to sound; to ring; loud; classifier for noises |
| 门 | Mén | surname Men |
| 铃 | līng | (small) bell |
| 叫道 | jiào dào | to call; to shout |
| 看到 | kàn dào | to see |
| 太 | tài | highest; greatest; too (much); very; extremely |
| 高兴 | gāo xìng | happy; glad; willing (to do sth); in a cheerful mood |
| 啦 | lā | (onom.) sound of singing, cheering etc; (phonetic); (dialect) to chat |
| 跟 | gēn | heel; to follow closely; to go with; (of a woman) to marry sb; with; compared with; to; towards; and (joining two nouns) |
| 刚才 | gāng cái | just now; a moment ago |
| 丑 | Chǒu | surname Chou; shameful; ugly; disgraceful |
| 八 | bā | eight |
| 站 | zhàn | station; to stand; to halt; to stop; branch of a company or organization; website |
| 在 | zài | to exist; to be alive; (of sb or sth) to be (located) at; (used before a verb to indicate an action in progress) |
| 院子 | yuàn zi | courtyard; garden; yard; patio; CL:個|个[ge4]; (old) servant |
| 里 | lǐ | variant of 裡|里[li3]; lining; interior; inside; internal; also written 裏|里[li3]; surname Li |
| 可 | kě | (prefix) can; may; able to; -able; to approve; to permit; to suit; (particle used for emphasis) certainly; very; but; however |
| 坏 | huài | bad; spoiled; broken; to break down; (suffix) to the utmost |
| 那个 | nà ge | that one; that thing; that (as opposed to this); (used before a verb or adjective for emphasis); (used to humorously or indirectly refer to sth embarrassing, funny etc, or when one… |
| 故事 | gù shì | old practice |
| 仔 | zái | careful (in 仔细); young (of animals, in 仔猪); a child (dialect, zai3) |
| 细 | xì | thin or slender; finely particulate; thin and soft; fine; delicate; trifling; (of a sound) quiet; frugal |
| 讲 | jiǎng | to speak; to explain; to negotiate; to emphasize; to be particular about; as far as sth is concerned; speech; lecture |
| 则 | zé | (literary) (conjunction used to express contrast with a previous clause) but; then; (bound form) standard; norm; (bound form) principle; (literary) to imitate; to follow; classifie… |
| 一直 | yī zhí | straight (in a straight line); continuously; always; all the way through |
| 怀 | huāi | bosom; heart; to cherish; to carry (in the mind or womb); surname Huai |
| 同情 | tóng qíng | to sympathize with; sympathy |
| 听 | yǐn | smile (archaic); to listen to; to hear; to heed; to obey; a can (loanword from English "tin"); classifier for canned beverages; to let be; to allow (Taiwan pr. [ting4]); (literary) to administer; t… |
Today, it’s a great day for a picnic. Mr. Pig dressed himself with care, looking forward to [the possibility of] Miss Pig and himself going on a picnic together.
“Heh, I hope she says ‘Yes’ [lit: I’m willing]. Hm, I’ll also pick some flowers to give her, that will certainly be enough to sway her!”
On the road, Mr. Pig ran into his friend Fox. When fox heard about the picnic, he said: “Let me give you a suggestion, let me lend you my beautiful tail. See, you look so clever, Miss Pig will certainly like it.” Mr. Pig was very pleased.
Continuing on, he ran into his friend Lion. Lion heard about the picnic and said: “Let me give you a suggestion, borrow my beautiful hair for when you go over there. See, you look so powerful, Miss Pig will certainly like it.” Mr. Pig was very pleased.
After a while, he ran into his friend Zebra. Zebra heard about the picnic and said: “Let me give you a suggestion, I’ll lend you my beautiful stripes. See, you look so handsome. Miss Pig will certainly like it.” Mr. Pig was very pleased. He felt that he’d never before looked so handsome.
Finally arriving at Miss Pig’s house, Mr. Pig excitedly knocked on the door. “Would you do me the honor of going on a picnic with me?” he asked.
Miss Pig was terrified: “Oh, no way! What kind of monster are you? If you don’t go away, I’ll go get Mr. Pig, he’ll straighten you out!”
Mr. Pig hurriedly ran away. On the road, he gave the stripes back to Zebra, the hair back to Lion, and the tail back to Fox. AFter that, he hurried back to Miss Pig’s house, and again pressed the doorbell.
“Would you do me the honor of having a picnic with me?” he asked again.
“Goodness, Mr. Pig!” Miss Pig cried out. “I’m so happy to see you, I’d love to go on a picnic with you. An ugly wretch just came by here, standing in my garden, and scared me so.”
On the way, Miss Pig told Mr. Pig the story of the ‘ugly wretch’ in great detail. Her handsome friend Mr. Pig, though, listened with great sympathy. It really was a great day for a picnic.