Upper-Intermediate - Dinosaurs (D1232)

A: 丰教授,我们的时光穿梭机成功了!
Fēng jiàoshòu, wǒmen de shíguāng chuānsuōjī chénggōng le!
Professor Feng, our time machine is a success!
B: 是啊,小夏,我们来到了侏罗纪时期!我们能亲眼看见恐龙了!
shì a, Xiǎoxià, wǒmen láidào le zhūluójì shíqī! wǒmen néng qīnyǎn kànjian kǒnglóng le!
Yes, Xiao Xia, we’ve arrived in the Jurassic era. We can see dinosaurs with our own eyes!
A: 可是丰教授,这儿好像没有恐龙。
kěshì Fēng jiàoshòu, zhèr hǎoxiàng méiyǒu kǒnglóng.
But there don’t seem to be any dinosaurs here, Professor Feng.
B: 你以为这是动物园啊?随便让你参观?我们要去恐龙出没的地方才行。走吧!
nǐ yǐwéi zhè shì dòngwùyuán a? suíbiàn ràng nǐ cānguān? wǒmen yào qù kǒnglóng chūmò de dìfang cái xíng. zǒu ba!
Did you think this was a zoo, where you could just casually visit and observe? We need to go to the places where dinosaurs hang around. Come on!
A: 教授,恐龙!恐龙!
jiàoshòu, kǒnglóng! kǒnglóng!
Professor—a dinosaur! A dinosaur!
B: 这是雷龙!你看,它足足有几层楼高!脖子比身体还长!走,我们过去看看清楚。
zhè shì léilóng! nǐ kàn, tā zúzú yǒu jǐ céng lóu gāo! bózi bǐ shēntǐ hái cháng! zǒu, wǒmen guòqù kànkan qīngchǔ.
This is an Apatosaurus! Look, it’s a few stories tall! Its neck is longer than its body. Come on, let’s go over and get a clear look.
A: 啊,不要吧。万一它把我们吃了怎么办?
a, bùyào ba. wànyī tā bǎ wǒmen chī le zěnme bàn?
Ah, let’s not...what if he eats us?
B: 我白教你了!雷龙是草食动物,又不是肉食,怎么可能吃我们?快跟我走!
wǒ bái jiāo nǐ le! léilóng shì cǎoshí dòngwu, yòu bù shì ròushí, zěnme kěnéng chī wǒmen? kuài gēn wǒ zǒu!
I’ve taught you in vain! Apatosaurs are herbivores. They don’t eat meat—how could they eat you? Quick, go with me!
A: 噢。教授,你看,又来了几只!是剑龙吧?它的背上真的有一排剑。
o. jiàoshòu, nǐ kàn, yòu lái le jǐ zhī! shì jiànlóng ba? tā de bèi shang zhēnde yǒu yī pái jiàn.
Oh...Professor, look, a few more are coming! They’re Stegosaurs, right? It’s really got a row of “swords” on its back.
B: 哇,它们的躯体,它们的移动,太壮观了!
wā, tāmen de qūtǐ, tāmen de yídòng, tài zhuàngguān le!
Whoa—their bodies, their movements—they’re so magnificent!
A: 而且它们好像真的不吃肉哎!我们就在它们的眼皮底下它们一点儿都不感兴趣。
érqiě tāmen hǎoxiàng zhēnde bù chī ròu ai! wǒmen jiù zài tāmen de yǎnpídǐxià tāmen yīdiǎnr dōu bù gǎn xìngqù.
And they really don’t seem to eat meat! We’re right in front of their eyes, and they’re not at all interested in us.
B: 废话!恐龙们一起嬉戏玩耍,地球应该是这个样子。太美了!
fèihuà! kǒnglóng men yīqǐ xīxì wánshuǎ, dìqiú yīnggāi shì zhè ge yàngzi. tài měi le!
That goes without saying! Dinosaurs playing together—the world should be like this. It’s so beautiful!
A: 教授,又有恐龙来了!太好了!
jiàoshòu, yòu yǒu kǒnglóng lái le! tài hǎo le!
Professor, another dinosaur is coming! Great!
A: 这是怎么啦?雷龙、剑龙怎么都跑了?教授,小心!
zhè shì zěnme la? léilóng、 jiànlóng zěnme dōu pǎo le? jiàoshòu, xiǎoxīn!
What’s this? Why did the apatosaurs and stegosaurs all run away? Be careful, professor!
B: 啊,霸王龙来了!它要吃人啦!它不是活在白垩纪吗?怎么现在就来了?小夏,快跑!
a, bàwánglóng lái le! tā yào chīrén la! tā bù shì huó zài bái èjì ma? zěnme xiànzài jiù lái le? Xiǎo Xià, kuài pǎo!
Agh, a T-Rex is coming! It wants to eat someone! Didn’t it live during the Cretaceous era? How could it appear here? Quick, Xiao Xia-- run!

Key Vocabulary

时光穿梭机 shíguāng chuānsuōjī time machine
侏罗纪时期 Zhūluójì shíqī Jurassic Period
恐龙 kǒnglóng dinosaur
参观 cānguān to visit; to take a tour of
出没 chūmò to show up; to hang around
雷龙 léilóng apatosaur
足足 zúzú fully, easily
万一 wànyī what if; just in case
草食动物 cǎoshí dòngwù herbivore
肉食动物 ròushí dòngwù carnivore
剑龙 jiànlóng Stegosaurus
躯体 qūtǐ body
移动 yídòng movement; mobile
壮观 zhuàngguān spectacular
眼皮底下 yǎnpídǐxià under one's eyes
嬉戏 xīxì to play
霸王龙 bàwánglóng Tyrannosaurus Rex
白垩纪 Bái èjì Cretaceous Period

Supplementary Vocabulary

蛇颈龙 shéjǐnglóng Plesiosaurus
翼龙 yìlóng Pterodactyl
始祖鸟 shǐzǔniǎo Archaeopteryx
独角龙 dújiǎolóng Monoclonius
禽龙 qínlóng Iguanadon

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