Upper-Intermediate - Tropical Fish (D2427)

A: 老公,我的水族箱到啦。
lǎogōng, wǒde shuǐzúxiāng dào la.
Honey, my aquarium has arrived!
B: 哇,这么大的鱼缸,你想干嘛?
wā, zhème dà de yúgāng, nǐ xiǎng gànmá?
Whoa, that's such a big fish tank! What do you want to do with it?
A: 我要养热带鱼。
wǒ yào yǎng rèdài yú.
I want to raise tropical fish.
B: 不是吧,你已经养死过很多动物和植物了,这次你又打算谋杀热带鱼啦?
bùshìba, nǐ yǐjīng yǎng sǐ guo hěn duō dòngwù hé zhíwù le, zhè cì nǐ yòu dǎsuàn móushā rèdài yú la?
Seriously? You've already killed so many animals and plants. This time you're planning on murdering tropical fish?
A: 才不是呢,这次我可是做了很多功课的。
cái bù shì ne, zhè cì wǒ kěshì zuò le hěn duō gōngkè de.
No I'm not. This time I've done lots of research.
B: 哦?说来听听。
ò? shuōlái tīngting.
Oh? Tell me about it.
A: 要养鱼啊,得先养水。水的温度、含氧量、PH值、清澈度对小鱼来说,都很重要。养好了水,才能养好鱼。
yào yǎng yú ā, děi xiān yǎng shuǐ. shuǐ de wēndù、 hán yǎng liàng、 PH zhí、 qīngchè dù duì xiǎo yú láishuō, dōu hěn zhòngyào. yǎng hǎo le shuǐ, cáinéng yǎng hǎo yú.
If you want to raise fish, first you have to treat the water. The temperature of the water, oxygen content, pH level and clarity are all very important for the fish. Once the water is treated, then the fish can be raised.
B: 有点儿道理,那你打算养什么鱼啊?
yǒu diǎnr dàolǐ, nà nǐ dǎsuàn yǎng shénme yú ā?
That makes sense. Then what kind of fish do you plan to raise?
A: 我打算养孔雀鱼和月光鱼,据说这两种鱼比较适合新手,而且它们对水质的要求差不多,可以放在一起养。
wǒ dǎsuàn yǎng kǒngquèyú hé yuèguāngyú, jùshuō zhè liǎng zhǒng yú bǐjiào shìhé xīnshǒu, érqiě tāmen duì shuǐ zhì de yāoqiú chàbuduō, kěyǐ fàng zài yīqǐ yǎng.
I'm planning to raise guppies and moonfish. It's said that these two fish are suitable for beginners. In addition, their requirements for the water are about the same, so you can raise them together.
B: 你打算什么时候去买鱼呢?
nǐ dǎsuàn shénmeshíhou qù mǎi yú ne?
When are you going to go buy the fish?
A: 你陪我去一趟花鸟市场吧。我们下个周末去吧。
nǐ péi wǒ qù yī tāng huā niǎo shìchǎng ba. wǒmen xià gè zhōumò qù ba.
Go with me to take a look at the flower and bird market. Let's go next weekend.
B: 我看我们还是再晚点儿去,让那些可怜的小鱼多活几天吧。
wǒ kàn wǒmen háishì zài wǎn diǎnr qù, ràng nàxiē kělián de xiǎo yú duō huó jǐ tiān ba.
I think we had better go a bit later and let the poor fish live for a few extra days.

Key Vocabulary

水族箱 shuǐzúxiāng aquarium
鱼缸 yúgāng fish tank, aquarium
yǎng to raise, keep
热带 rèdài tropical
打算 dǎsuàn to plan
谋杀 móushā to murder
cái only then
可是 kěshì really to be
功课 gōngkè classwork, homework
děi to get
温度 wēndù temperature
hán to contain
yǎng oxygen
liàng amount
清澈 qīngchè clear
道理 dàolǐ reason
据说 jùshuō it is said, to be said
比较 bǐjiào relatively, pretty
适合 shìhé to be suitable
新手 xīnshǒu newbie, novice
zhì quality
péi to accompany
花鸟市场 huāniǎoshìchǎng flower and bird market
还是 háishì it would be better to
可怜 kělián pitiful

Supplementary Vocabulary

水族馆 shuǐzúguǎn aquarium
宠物 chǒngwù pet
怀疑 huáiyí to suspect, doubt
不合法 bùhéfǎ illegal
退货 tuìhuò to return a product

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