A young man tries to copy the way people walk in the city of Handan (邯郸), but only succeeds in making a fool of himself. HSK 3-4.
据说，赵国的首都邯郸的人走路的姿态很好看，动作非常好看。
燕国有一个少年听到这个传说，非常羡慕邯郸人，就走了很远的路去赵国，想学习邯郸人走路的方法。刚开始，他整天站在街头，仔细研究每个人走路的姿态，再慢慢模仿他们，可是都没有成功。
后来，他想可能是受到过去走路习惯的影响，所以，他决定要忘掉以前走路的方法。从那时候起，他更专心研究邯郸人走路的姿势，不过，再怎么努力他还是学不会，最后他只好放弃。
可是，因为他把以前走路的方法忘掉了，已经不知道该怎么走路，只好一路爬着回去。当别人看到他的样子，都忍不住笑他。
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| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 据 | jǔ | according to; based on; evidence |
| 说 | shuì | to persuade; variant of 說|说[shuo1] |
| 赵 | zhǎo | surname Zhao; the Former Zhao 前趙|前赵[Qian2 Zhao4] (304–329) and Later Zhao 後趙|后赵[Hou4 Zhao4] (319–350), states of the Sixteen Kingdoms |
| 国 | Guó | surname Guo |
| 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… |
| 首都 | shǒu dū | capital (city); CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 邯 | ||
| 郸 | ||
| 人 | rén | person; people; CL:個|个[ge4],位[wei4],名[ming2] |
| 走路 | zǒu lù | to walk; to go on foot; to leave; to depart; (informal) to clear off; to beat it; (of sb who gets fired or resigns) to leave the job; to get out |
| 姿 | zī | beauty; disposition; looks; appearance |
| 态 | tài | (bound form); appearance; shape; form; state; attitude; (grammar) voice |
| 很 | hěn | very; quite; (also, often used before an adjective without intensifying its meaning, i.e. as a meaningless syntactic element) |
| 好看 | hǎo kàn | good-looking; nice-looking; (of a movie, book, TV show etc) good; in an embarrassing situation |
| 动作 | dòng zuò | movement; motion; action; to act; to move |
| 非常 | fēi cháng | very; really; unusual; extraordinary |
| 燕国 | Yān guó | Yan, a vassal state of Zhou in modern Hebei and Liaoning; north Hebei; the four Yan kingdoms of the Sixteen Kingdoms, namely: Former Yan 前燕[Qian2 Yan1] (337-370), Later Yan 後燕|后燕[H… |
| 有 | yǒu | to have; there is; (bound form) having; with; -ful; -ed; -al (as in 有意[you3 yi4] intentional) |
| 一个 | yī ge | a; an; one; the whole (afternoon, summer vacation etc) |
| 少年 | shào nián | early youth; youngster; (literary) youth; young man |
| 听到 | tīng dào | to hear |
| 这个 | zhè ge | (pronoun) this; (adjective) this |
| 传 | chuān | to pass on; to transmit; to transfer; to conduct (electricity) |
| 羡 | xiǎn | to envy |
| 慕 | mù | to admire |
| 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… |
| 走 | zǒu | to walk; to go; to run; to move (of vehicle); to visit; to leave; to go away; to die (euph.); from; through; away (in compound verbs, such as 撤走[che4 zou3]); to change (shape, form… |
| 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 |
| 远 | yuǎn | far; distant; remote; (intensifier in a comparison) by far; much (lower etc) |
| 路 | Lù | surname Lu |
| 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);… |
| 想 | xiǎng | to think (about); to think of; to devise; to think (that); to believe (that); to desire; to want (to); to miss (feel wistful about the absence of) |
| 学习 | xué xí | to learn; to study |
| 方 | Fāng | surname Fang |
| 法 | fǎ | variant of 法[fa3]; France; French; abbr. for 法國|法国[Fa3 guo2]; Taiwan pr. [Fa4]; old variant of 法[fa3]; law |
| 刚 | gāng | (literary) hard; firm; strong; exactly; precisely; barely; only just; just; only a short while ago |
| 开始 | kāi shǐ | to begin; to start; beginning; start |
| 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]) |
| 整 | zhěng | (bound form) whole; complete; entire; (before a measure word) whole; (before or after number + measure word) exactly; (bound form) in good order; tidy; neat; (bound form) to put in… |
| 天 | tiān | day; sky; heaven |
| 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) |
| 街 | jiē | street; CL:條|条[tiao2] |
| 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] |
| 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 |
| 研究 | yán jīu | research; a study; CL:項|项[xiang4]; to research; to look into |
| 每个人 | měi ge rén | everybody; everyone |
| 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… |
| 慢 | màn | slow |
| 模 | mō | to imitate; norm |
| 仿 | fǎng | to imitate; to copy; variant of 仿[fang3] |
| 们 | men | plural marker for pronouns, and nouns referring to individuals |
| 可是 | kě shì | but; however; (used for emphasis) indeed |
| 都 | Dū | surname Du |
| 没有 | méi yǒu | haven't; hasn't; doesn't exist; to not have; to not be |
| 成功 | chéng gōng | to succeed; success; successful; fruitful |
| 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… |
| 可 | kě | (prefix) can; may; able to; -able; to approve; to permit; to suit; (particle used for emphasis) certainly; very; but; however |
| 能 | Néng | surname Neng |
| 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] |
| 受到 | shòu dào | to receive (praise, an education, punishment etc); to be ...ed (praised, educated, punished etc) |
| 过去 | guò qù | (in the) past; former; previous; to go over; to pass by |
| 习 | Xí | surname Xi |
| 惯 | guàn | accustomed to; used to; indulge; to spoil (a child) |
| 影响 | yǐng xiǎng | influence; effect; to influence; to affect (usually adversely); to disturb; CL:股[gu3] |
| 所以 | suǒ yǐ | therefore; as a result; so; the reason why |
| 决定 | jué dìng | to decide; to determine; to make up one's mind; decision (CL:個|个[ge4],項|项[xiang4]) |
| 要 | yāo | (bound form) to demand; to coerce |
| 忘 | wàng | to forget; to overlook; to neglect |
| 掉 | diào | to fall; to drop; to lag behind; to lose; to go missing; to reduce; fall (in prices); to lose (value, weight etc); to wag; to swing; to turn; to change; to exchange; to swap; to sh… |
| 以前 | yǐ qián | before; formerly; previous; ago |
| 从 | cóng | variant of 從|从[cong2]; surname Cong |
| 那时 | nà shí | then; at that time; in those days |
| 候 | hòu | to wait; to inquire after; to watch; season; climate; (old) period of five days |
| 起 | qǐ | to rise; to raise; to get up; to set out; to start; to appear; to launch; to initiate (action); to draft; to establish; to get (from a depot or counter); verb suffix, to start; sta… |
| 更 | gēng | to change or replace; to experience; one of the five two-hour periods into which the night was formerly divided; watch (e.g. of a sentry or guard) |
| 专 | zhuan | for a particular person, occasion, purpose; special; particular (to sth); specialized |
| 心 | xīn | heart; mind; intention; center; core; CL:顆|颗[ke1],個|个[ge4] |
| 姿势 | zī shì | posture; position |
| 不过 | bù guò | only; merely; no more than; but; however; anyway (to get back to a previous topic); cannot be more (after adjectival) |
| 怎 | zěn | how |
| 么 | má | exclamatory final particle; variant of 麼|么[me5] |
| 努力 | nǔ lì | to make an effort; to try hard; to strive; hard-working; conscientious |
| 还是 | hái shi | still (as before); had better; unexpectedly; or |
| 学 | xué | to learn; to study; to imitate; science; -ology |
| 不会 | bù huì | improbable; unlikely; will not (act, happen etc); not able; not having learned to do sth; (coll.) (Tw) don't mention it; not at all |
| 最 | zuì | variant of 最[zui4]; old variant of 最[zui4]; (before an adjective or verb) to the highest degree; (the) most ...; -est; (after 之[zhi1]) best or most extreme example (e.g. 世界之最[shi4 jie4 zhi1 zui4] "the greatest in the world") |
| 只好 | zhǐ hǎo | to have no other option but to ...; to have to; to be forced to |
| 放弃 | fàng qì | to renounce; to abandon; to give up |
| 因为 | yīn wèi | because; owing to; on account of |
| 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… |
| 已经 | yǐ jīng | already |
| 不知 | bù zhī | not to know; unaware; unknowingly; fig. not to admit (defeat, hardships, tiredness etc) |
| 道 | dào | road; path (CL:條|条[tiao2],股[gu3]); (bound form) way; reason; principle; (bound form) a skill; an art; a specialization; (Daoism) the Way; the Dao; to say (introducing a direct quot… |
| 该 | gāi | should; ought to; probably; must be; to deserve; to owe; to be sb's turn to do sth; that; the above-mentioned |
| 一路 | yī lù | the whole journey; all the way; going the same way; going in the same direction; of the same kind |
| 爬 | pá | to crawl; to climb; to get up or sit up |
| 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 |
| 回去 | huí qu | to return; to go back |
| 当 | dāng | (onom.) dong; ding dong (bell); to be; to act as; manage; withstand; when; during; ought; should; match equally; equal; same; obstruct; just at (a time or place); on the spot; right; just at |
| 别人 | bié ren | other people; others; other person |
| 看到 | kàn dào | to see |
| 样 | yàng | manner; pattern; way; appearance; shape; classifier: kind, type |
| 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… |
| 忍 | rén | to bear; to tolerate |
| 不 | bù | no; not so; (bound form) not; un- |
| 住 | zhù | to live; to reside; to stay; to stop; to cease; (result complement indicating firmness or a stable achieved state) |
| 笑 | xiào | old variant of 笑[xiao4]; to laugh; to smile; to laugh at |
It is said that in Handan, the capital of the State of Zhao, the people there walk with a beautiful posture, and their movements are very lovely to look upon.
In the State of Yan, there was a youth who heard this legend, and he envied the people of Handan, so he went to the far-away State of Zhao, thinking to study the way Handan people walked.At first, he stood on the street the whole day, carefully researching the walking posture of everyone pedestrian, and slowly [trying to] imitate them, but he didn’t succeed.
Later, he thought perhaps he had been influenced by his old way of walking, so, he decided to forget how he used to walk. From that time forward, he studied the walking posture of Handan people even harder, but no matter how hard he studied he still couldn’t learn it, and finally he had to give up.
However, because he had forgotten his old way of walking, he couldn’t walk at all, and he had to crawl back [home]. When other saw him this way, they couldn’t help but laugh at him.