乐广有一个好朋友，很长时间不来看乐广。
乐广问他为什么，朋友回答：“以前在你家，你请我喝酒，喝酒的时候，我看见杯里边有一条蛇，心里很害怕，喝了以后，就生了重病。
”乐广家的墙上有弓，弓上画着一条蛇。
乐广猜杯中的蛇就是弓的影子。
他在一样的地方又请那位朋友喝酒，对朋友说：“杯中是否又看见了什么东西？
”朋友回答：“我看见的跟上次一样。
”乐广就告诉他为什么，客人听了心情好了，重病也好了。
现在人们用“杯弓蛇影”说一些人因为一点儿事情就怀疑，这是不对的。
Hover a word for its pinyin & meaning; click to pin it.
narration saved locally, offline — from https://download.mandarinbean.com/audio?source=aHR0cHM6Ly90cmFmZmljLmxpYnN5bi5jb20vbGVhcm5jaGluZXNlL0Ffc25ha2VfaW5fdGhlX2RyaW5raW5nX2N1cF8zMDA0Lm1wMw&filename=A-snake-in-the-drinking-cup.mp3&signature=9a27cab61d3b936a1e18b014f1e140dcf8a071a3149a0d024003c9730b06017d
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 乐广 | Yuè Guǎng | a scholar in Liang-era |
| 有 | yǒu | to have; there is |
| 一 | yī | one / single / a (article) |
| 个 | gè | classifier for people or objects in general |
| 好 | hǎo | good / appropriate; proper |
| 朋友 | péng you | friend |
| 很 | hěn | very; quite |
| 长 | cháng | long |
| 时间 | shí jiān | time |
| 不 | bù | no; not so |
| 来 | lái | to come |
| 看 | kàn | to see; to look at / to read / to watch / to visit; to call on / to consider; to regard as / to look after / to treat (a patient or illness) / to depend on / to feel (that) / (after a verb) to give it a try / to watch out for |
| 问 | wèn | to ask; to inquire |
| 他 | tā | he; him; his |
| 为什么 | wèi shén me | why? / for what reason? |
| 回答 | huí dá | to reply; to answer / reply; answer |
| 以前 | yǐ qián | before / formerly / previous / ago |
| 在 | zài | (of sb or sth) to be (located) at |
| 你 | nǐ | you |
| 家 | jiā | home / family / (polite) my (sister, uncle etc) |
| 请 | qǐng | to treat (to a meal etc) |
| 我 | wǒ | I; me; my |
| 喝酒 | hē jiǔ | to drink (alcohol) |
| 的 | de | possessive particle (of; 's) / modifying particle (used after an attribute to modify a noun or to form a nominal expression) |
| 时候 | shí hou | time / length of time / moment / period |
| 看见 | kàn jiàn | to see; to catch sight of |
| 杯 | bēi | cup / trophy cup |
| 里边 | lǐ bian | inside |
| 条 | tiáo | classifier for long thin things |
| 蛇 | shé | snake / serpent |
| 心里 | xīn lǐ | chest / heart; mind |
| 害怕 | hài pà | to be afraid; to be scared |
| 喝 | hē | to drink |
| 了 | le | (completed action marker) / (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now) |
| 以后 | yǐ hòu | after / later / afterwards / following / later on / in the future |
| 就 | jiù | as soon as; immediately after |
| 生 | shēng | to grow; to give birth; to produce; to be born / to arise; to occur / to light (a fire) |
| 重 | zhòng | heavy / serious |
| 病 | bìng | illness / disease / defect |
| 墙上 | qiáng shàng | on the wall |
| 弓 | gōng | a bow (weapon) |
| 上 | shàng | (noun suffix) on; above |
| 画 | huà | to draw; to paint / to draw (a line) |
| 着 | zhe | aspect particle indicating action in progress or ongoing state |
| 猜 | cāi | to guess |
| 中 | zhōng | within; among; in |
| 就是 | jiù shì | exactly; precisely / only; simply; just / even; even if |
| 影子 | yǐng zi | shadow / reflection / (fig.) hint / indication / influence |
| 一样 | yī yàng | same / like / equal to / the same as |
| 地方 | dì fang | place; location; area; space; territory / aspect; part |
| 又 | yòu | (once) again |
| 那位 | nà wèi | that person; that one |
| 对 | duì | towards; at; for / concerning; regarding |
| 说 | shuō | to speak; to talk; to say |
| 杯中 | bēi zhōng | in the cup; inside the cup |
| 是否 | shì fǒu | whether (or not) / if / is or isn't |
| 什么 | shén me | something; anything |
| 东西 | dōng xi | thing / stuff / person |
| 跟 | gēn | with / compared with / to / towards |
| 上次 | shàng cì | last time |
| 告诉 | gào su | to tell; to inform; to let know |
| 客人 | kè rén | visitor / guest / customer / client |
| 听 | tīng | to listen to; to hear |
| 心情 | xīn qíng | mood; frame of mind |
| 也 | yě | even (extreme or unexpected case) |
| 现在 | xiàn zài | now; at present; currently |
| 人们 | rén men | people |
| 用 | yòng | to use; to make use of; to employ / (coverb) with; using |
| 杯弓蛇影 | bēi gōng shé yǐng | lit. to see a bow reflected in a cup as a snake (idiom); fig. unnecessary suspicions / overly fearful |
| 一些 | yī xiē | some; a few; a little; (following an adjective) slightly ...er |
| 人 | rén | person; people |
| 因为 | yīn wèi | because; owing to; on account of |
| 一点儿 | yī diǎn r | erhua |
| 事情 | shì qing | affair; matter; thing; business |
| 怀疑 | huái yí | to doubt (sth); to be skeptical of / to have one's doubts; to harbor suspicions; to suspect that |
| 这是 | zhè shì | this is; this is the case |
| 不对 | bù duì | incorrect / wrong / amiss / abnormal / queer |