孔融让梨 Kong Rong Gave Away Bigger Pears

Key Learning Points (Preview):

“梨 (lí)” is the Chinese character for “pear.” （Riddle time: Guess the fruit.）

Find taboo Chinese gift idea here!

礼物 (lǐwù) n. gift

Origin Story

Dōnghàn shíhou, yǒugè jiào Kǒng róng de rén. Tā xiǎoshíhou hěn cōngming, yǒu wǔgè gēge,  yígè dìdi.
东汉时候， 有个叫孔融的人。他小时候很聪明，有五个哥哥，一个弟弟。

In the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was a person called Kong Rong. He’d been smart ever since he was a little boy. He had five older brothers and one younger brother.

Yìtiān bàba mǎile yìxiē lízi, tèyì jiǎnle yígè zuìdà de gěi Kǒng róng, Kǒng róng què yáotóu búyào, ná le
一天爸爸买了一些梨子，特意捡了一个最大的给孔融，孔融却摇头不要，拿了
yígè zuì xiǎode lí.
一个最小的梨。

One day his father bought some pears, picking one of the largest and giving it to Kong Rong deliberately. But Kong Rong shook his head and picked up the smallest one.

Bàba hěn hàoqí, jiùwèn: “Wèishénme ne?”
爸爸很好奇， 就问：“为什么呢？”
His dad was very curious, and asked: “Why?”

Kǒng róng shuō: “Wǒ niánjì xiǎo, wǒ chī xiǎo lí, dà de gěi gēge chī.”
孔融说：“   我年纪小， 我吃小梨，大的给哥哥吃。”
Kong Rong said: “I am younger, so I should eat the smaller pear, and brothers should eat the bigger ones.”

Bàba tīnghòu hěngāoxìng, yòu wèn: “Nà dìdi bǐ nǐ hái xiǎo ya?”
爸爸听后很高兴， 又问：  “ 那弟弟比你还小呀？”
His dad was very glad after hearing his words, but asked further: “What about your younger brother who is younger than you are?”

Kǒng róng shuō: “Wǒ bǐ dìdi dà, wǒshì gēge, wǒ yīnggāi bǎ dà de liúgěi xiǎodìdi chī.”
孔融说：“  我比弟弟大，我是哥哥， 我应该把大的留给小弟弟吃。”
Kong Rong said: “I am older than him, so I should leave the bigger one to my little brother.”

Hòulái, Kǒng róng chéngwéi le yígè hěn yǒuxuéwen de rén.
后来，孔融成为了一个很有学问的人。
Later, Kong Rong became a great scholar.

生词 (shēngcí) Vocabulary

“梨 (lí)” is the Chinese character for “pear.” 

Example:

Tā zuì xǐhuɑn chīlí le.
她最喜欢吃梨了。
She loves to eat pears most.

礼物 (lǐwù) n. gift

“礼 (lǐ)” refers to gift and “物 (wù)” refers to object.

What Is the Best Gift You Can Give to Your Mother?

Example:

Shēngrì jùhuì shàng, tā shōudào le hěnduō lǐwù.
生日聚会上，他收到了很多礼物。
He receives a lot of gifts at his birthday party

聪明 (cōngmíng): adj. smart

好奇 (hàoqí): adj. curious

摇头 (yáotóu): v shake one’ s head

特意地 (tèyì de): adv. deliberately

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