General Chinese

盲人摸象 (Mángrén mō xiàng) Blind Men and an Elephant

Key Learning Points (Preview):

牙齿 (yáchǐ): n. teeth

象 (xiàng): n. elephan

Cóngqián, yǒu sì gè mángrén hěn xiǎng zhīdào dàxiàng shì shénme yàngzi.
从前，       有   四 个    盲人    很    想      知道    大象      是    什么     样子。

In ancient time, there were four blind men. They were curious to know what an elephant looked like.
 

Kěshì tāmen kàn bú jiàn, zhǐhǎo yòng shǒu qù mō dàxiàng.
可是    他们    看   不  见，只好    用      手    去   摸   大象。

Since they couldn't see anything, they had no way but to touch an elephant.

Pàng mángrén mō dào le dàxiàng de yáchǐ.
胖        盲人     摸   到   了 大象      的  牙齿。
Tā jiù shuō: "Wǒ zhīdào le, dàxiàng jiù xiàng yí gè yòu  dà yòu cū de luóbo."
他 就 说：“  我 知道     了，大象     就   像    一个 又    大   又 粗 的 萝卜”。

The fat blind man touched the elephant's teeth, and said, "I see, an elephant is just like a big and thick radish."

Gāo gèzi mángrén mō dào de shì dàxiàng de ěrduo.
高    个子 盲人      摸    到   的   是  大象    的  耳朵。
Tā shuō: "Bú duì, dàxiàng míng míng shì yì bǎ  dà púshàn ma!"
他 说：“  不 对， 大象       明      明    是 一把   大 蒲扇    嘛” !

The tall blind men touched one of the elephant's ears, and said, "You are wrong, an elephant is just like a palm-leaf fan."
 

"Nǐmen jìng xiāshuō, dàxiàng zhǐshì gēn dà zhùzi."
“你们     净    瞎说，   大象     只是    根   大 柱子”。
Ǎi gèzi mángrén hǎn qǐlái, yīnwèi tā mō dào le dàxiàng de tuǐ.
矮个子   盲人      喊   起来，因为  他 摸 到  了 大象     的 腿。

"What nonsense are you talking about? An elephant is just a big pillar!" The short blind man shouted, because he just touched a leg of the elephant.
 

Dì sì wèi niánlǎo de mángrén ne,  tā mō dào le wěiba,
第 四 位 年老     的 盲人       呢，他 摸 到 了 尾巴，
dūrǎng zhe: "Āi, dàxiàng nǎ yǒu nàme dà,  tā zhǐ búguò shì yì  gēn cǎoshéng."
嘟嚷      着：“唉，大象    哪 有    那么 大，它 只 不过   是 一 根    草绳”。

The fourth old blind man touched the tail and burbled, "Hey, how can an elephant be so big? It is just a straw rope!"

The four men quarreled with each other endlessly and they all thought themselves were right. In fact, none of them was right and really knew what an elephant looks like. This kids Chinese story tells us that we can't draw conclusions from incomplete information.

Key Learning Points:

牙齿 (yáchǐ): n. teeth

Example:

Xiǎohái chī tài duō táng duì yáchǐ bù hǎo.
小孩       吃 太 多   糖    对   牙齿 不  好。

Eating too much sugar will do harm to kids' teeth.

象 (xiàng): n. elephan

In spoken Chinese, we often use "大象 (dàxiàng)" to refer to elephant.

Example:    

   Māma,  nǐ xiàwǔ néng dài wǒ qù dòngwùyuán ma?
A: 妈妈， 你 下午   能     带 我 去    动物园       吗？    
   Wǒ xiǎng qù kàn dàxiàng, háiyǒu lǎohǔ.    
   我    想     去 看    大象，   还有   老虎。

   Mum, can you take me to the zoo in the afternoon? I want to see elephants and tigers.     

    Hǎo ā, bǎobèi.
B: 好 啊，宝贝。

     Ok, baby.

生词 (shēngcí) Vocabulary:

蒲扇 (púshàn): n. palm-leaf fan

柱子 (zhùzi): n. pillar

草绳 (cǎoshéng): n. straw rope

Learn more vocabulary from kids Chinese nursery rhyme:

耳朵: 小白兔 (xiǎo báitù ) Little White Rabbits   

 腿: 青蛙歌 (Qīngwā gē) Frog Song

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