A very simple story about three friendly butterflies who stick up for each other.
花园里有三只蝴蝶，一只是红色的，一只是黄色的，一只是白色的。三个好朋友天天都在一起玩，可好了。一天，他们正玩得，天突然下起了雨。三只蝴蝶的翅膀都被雨打湿了，浑身冻得发抖。
三只小蝴蝶一起飞到红花那里，对红花说: “红花姐姐，让我们飞到你的叶子下面躲躲雨吧！”
红花说: “红蝴蝶进来吧，其他的快飞开！”
三个好朋友一齐摇摇头: “我们是好朋友，一块儿来，也一块儿走。”
他们又飞到黄花那里，对黄花说: “黄花姐姐，让我们飞到你的叶子下面躲躲雨吧！”黄花说: “黄蝴蝶进来吧，其他的快飞开！”
三个好朋友一齐摇摇头: “我们是好朋友，一块儿来，也一块儿走。”
然后，他们又飞到白花那里，对白花说: “白花姐姐，让我们飞到你的叶子下面躲躲雨吧！”
可是白花也说: “白蝴蝶进来吧，其他的快飞开！”
这三个好朋友还是一齐摇摇头，对白花说: “我们是好朋友，一块儿来，也一块儿走。”
这时，太阳公公看见了，赶忙把乌云赶走，叫雨停下。
天终于晴了，这三个好朋友又一起在花丛中跳舞玩游戏了。
Hover a word for its pinyin & meaning; click to pin it.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 花园 | huā yuán | garden (for flowers, ornamental plants etc); (landscaped) park; yard with decorative plants; CL:座[zuo4] |
| 里 | lǐ | variant of 裡|里[li3]; lining; interior; inside; internal; also written 裏|里[li3]; surname Li |
| 有 | yǒu | to have; there is; (bound form) having; with; -ful; -ed; -al (as in 有意[you3 yi4] intentional) |
| 三 | Sān | surname San |
| 只 | zhī | variant of 隻|只[zhi1]; variant of 只[zhi3]; grain that has begun to ripen; classifier for birds and certain animals, one of a pair, some utensils, vessels etc |
| 蝴 | hū | used in 蝴蝶[hu2 die2] |
| 蝶 | dié | variant of 蝶[die2]; (bound form) butterfly |
| 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 … |
| 只是 | zhǐ shì | merely; only; just; nothing but; simply; but; however |
| 红色 | hóng sè | red (color); revolutionary |
| 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… |
| 黄色 | huáng sè | yellow; vulgar; lewd; pornographic |
| 白色 | bái sè | white; fig. reactionary; anti-communist |
| 个 | gě | used in 自個兒|自个儿[zi4 ge3 r5]; variant of 個|个[ge4] |
| 好朋友 | hǎo péng you | good friend; (slang) a visit from Aunt Flo (menstrual period) |
| 天天 | tiān tiān | every day |
| 都 | Dū | surname Du |
| 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) |
| 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) |
| 玩 | wán | to play; to have fun; to trifle with; toy; sth used for amusement; curio or antique (Taiwan pr. [wan4]); to keep sth for entertainment; variant of 玩[wan2]; Taiwan pr. [wan4] |
| 可好 | kě hǎo | good or not?; luckily; fortuitously |
| 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 |
| 天 | tiān | day; sky; heaven |
| 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]) |
| 们 | men | plural marker for pronouns, and nouns referring to individuals |
| 正 | zhēng | first month of the lunar year |
| 得 | dé | to obtain; to get; to gain; to catch (a disease); proper; suitable; proud; contented; to allow; to permit; ready; finished |
| 突然 | tū rán | sudden; abrupt; unexpected |
| 下 | xià | down; downwards; below; lower; later; next (week etc); second (of two parts); to decline; to go down; to arrive at (a decision, conclusion etc); measure word to show the frequency … |
| 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… |
| 雨 | yǔ | rain; CL:陣|阵[zhen4],場|场[chang2] |
| 翅 | chì | variant of 翅[chi4]; (bound form) wing (of a bird or insect) |
| 膀 | báng | upper arm |
| 被 | bèi | quilt; to cover (with); (literary) to suffer (a misfortune); used to indicate passive voice (placed before the doer of the action like "by" in English passive-voice sentences, or, … |
| 打 | dá | (loanword) dozen; Taiwan pr. [da3] |
| 湿 | shi | wet; moist; damp |
| 浑 | hūn | muddy; turbid; (bound form) simple; natural |
| 身 | shēn | body; life; oneself; personally; one's morality and conduct; the main part of a structure or body; pregnant; classifier for sets of clothes: suit, twinset; Kangxi radical 158 |
| 冻 | dǒng | to freeze; aspic or jelly |
| 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] |
| 抖 | dóu | to tremble; to reveal |
| 小 | xiǎo | small; tiny; few; young |
| 飞 | fēi | to fly |
| 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… |
| 红花 | hóng huā | safflower (Carthamus tinctorius) |
| 那里 | nà li | there; that place |
| 对 | duì | right; correct; towards; at; for; concerning; regarding; to treat (sb a certain way); to face; (bound form) opposite; facing; matching; to match together; to adjust; to fit; to sui… |
| 说 | shuì | to persuade; variant of 說|说[shuo1] |
| 姐 | jiě | older sister |
| 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]) |
| 我 | wǒ | I; me; my |
| 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.) |
| 叶子 | yè zi | leaf (CL:片[pian4]); (slang) marijuana |
| 下面 | xià miàn | below; under; next; the following; also pr. [xia4 mian5] |
| 躲 | duǒ | to hide; to dodge; to avoid |
| 躲雨 | duǒ yǔ | to take shelter from the rain |
| 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] |
| 红 | Hóng | surname Hong |
| 进 | jìn | to go forward; to advance; to go in; to enter; to put in; to submit; to take in; to admit; (math.) base of a number system; classifier for sections in a building or residential com… |
| 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… |
| 其 | qí | his; her; its; their; that; such; it (refers to sth preceding it) |
| 快 | kuài | rapid; quick; speed; rate; soon; almost; to make haste; clever; sharp (of knives or wits); forthright; plainspoken; gratified; pleased; pleasant |
| 开 | kāi | to open (transitive or intransitive); (of ships, vehicles, troops etc) to start; to turn on; to put in operation; to operate; to run; to boil; to write out (a prescription, check, … |
| 一齐 | yī qí | at the same time; simultaneously |
| 摇 | yāo | to shake; to wave; to rock; to sway |
| 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] |
| 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] |
| 一块儿 | yī kuài r | erhua variant of 一塊|一块[yi1 kuai4] |
| 也 | Yě | surname Ye |
| 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… |
| 又 | yòu | (once) again; also; both... and...; and yet; (used for emphasis) anyway |
| 黄花 | huáng huā | yellow flowers (of various types); chrysanthemum; cauliflower; (yellow) daylily; a young virgin (boy or girl) |
| 黄 | Huáng | surname Huang or Hwang |
| 然 | rán | correct; right; so; thus; like this; -ly |
| 后 | Hòu | surname Hou; back; behind; rear; afterwards; after; later; post- |
| 白 | Bái | surname Bai; Bai ethnic group |
| 花 | Huā | surname Hua; old variant of 花[hua1]; variant of 花[hua1]; flower; blossom; also pr. [wei3] |
| 对白 | duì bái | dialogue (in a movie or a play) |
| 可是 | kě shì | but; however; (used for emphasis) indeed |
| 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) |
| 还是 | hái shi | still (as before); had better; unexpectedly; or |
| 这时 | zhè shí | at this time; at this moment |
| 太阳 | tài yang | sun; sunlight; sunshine; temple (on the side of the human head) (abbr. for 太陽穴|太阳穴[tai4 yang2 xue2]) |
| 公公 | gōng gong | husband's father; father-in-law; grandpa; grandad; (old) form of address for a eunuch |
| 看见 | kàn jiàn | to see; to catch sight of |
| 赶忙 | gǎn máng | to hurry; to hasten; to make haste |
| 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… |
| 乌 | wu | abbr. for country names that begin with 烏|乌[wu1]: Ukraine 烏克蘭|乌克兰[Wu1 ke4 lan2], Uzbekistan 烏茲別克斯坦|乌兹别克斯坦[Wu1 zi1 bie2 ke4 si1 tan3] etc |
| 云 | yún | (classical) to say; surname Yun; short name for Yunnan 雲南|云南[Yun2 nan2] |
| 赶走 | gǎn zǒu | to drive out; to turn back |
| 叫 | jiào | to shout; to call; to order; to ask; to be called; by (indicates agent in the passive mood); variant of 叫[jiao4] |
| 停 | tíng | to stop; to halt; to park (a car) |
| 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… |
| 晴 | qíng | clear; fine (weather) |
| 丛 | cōng | cluster; collection of books |
| 中 | Zhōng | (bound form) China; Chinese; surname Zhong |
| 跳舞 | tiào wǔ | to dance |
| 游 | Yóu | surname You; to walk; to tour; to roam; to travel |
| 戏 | xì | variant of 戲|戏[xi4]; trick; drama; play; show; CL:齣|出[chu1],場|场[chang3],臺|台[tai2] |
In the garden there were three butterflies, one red one, one yellow one, and one white one. Every day the three good friends played together, it was great. One day just as they were playing, it suddenly began to rain. The three butterflies’ wings were drenched by the rain, their whole bodies were trembling with cold.
The three butterflies few together to a red flower, and said to it: “Big Sister Red Flower, let us hide from the rain under your leaves.”
The red flower said: “The red butterfly can come in, but the others must leave.”
The three good friends shook their heads together: “We’re good friends, we came together, and we’ll leave together.”
They flew off to a yellow flower, and to the yellow flower said, “Big Sister Yellow Flower, let us hide from the rain under your leaves.” The yellow flower said: “The yellow butterfly can come in, but the others must leave.”
The three good friends shook their heads and said: “We’re good friends, we came together, and we’ll leave together.”
Then, they flew away to the white flower, and to the white flower said: “Big Sister White Flower, let us hide from the rain under your leaves!”
But the white flower said to them: “The white butterfly can come in, but the rest must leave.”
The three good friends still shook their heads together and said: “We’re good friends, we came together and we’ll leave together.”
At this time, Old Man Sun saw what was happening, and he hurriedly chased the black clouds away and made the rain stop.
The sky was finally clear, and the three friends again went again to play and dance among the flowers.