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The Moment the Ground Shook: A Magnitude-7 Quake on Japan's Kyushu, and the Evacuation of Hundreds of Thousands — episode cover art
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The Moment the Ground Shook: A Magnitude-7 Quake on Japan's Kyushu, and the Evacuation of Hundreds of Thousands

About this story

An intermediate Chinese listening story on the Kyushu earthquake: a shallow magnitude-7 quake near Kumamoto, a cancelled tsunami warning, a collapsed mall, mass evacuations, and how a quake-ready Japan still bows to nature. HSK 5-6 Chinese listening practice.

This is an HSK 5-6 Chinese listening episode that runs about 2 minutes. The full Mandarin script is shown with tap-for-pinyin and a line-by-line English translation, so you can listen and read at once — comprehensible input in the sense of Stephen Krashen's i+1 theory. It teaches 11 key vocabulary words such as 城市、感觉、原因 and walks through 3 grammar patterns, each explained in English with examples. The same news story is retold at 4 difficulty levels — use the level selector above to find the version that is challenging but still understandable for you.

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原文

Read the complete story in Chinese. Reveal pinyin and English only when you need them.

七月十八下午日本南部九州突如地震狠狠摇晃一下
最初随后修正八级当地来说那种感觉一点不含糊
距离九州最大城市熊本只有二十公里左右而且震源只有十公里上下也是格外剧烈原因
地震发生日本气象第一时间发布海啸警报警告沿海可能出现海浪
所幸预想中的海啸没有真的到来警报不久解除人们稍稍放下
陆地破坏已经实在发生
一个一家大型商场二楼一些废墟之中
截至目前地震造成至少死亡余人受伤具体损失进一步统计
出于余震担心十万居民要求撤离家园安全地方避难
日本位于太平洋地震全世界地震频繁国家之一
建筑抗震全民演练他们几乎"地震共处"做到
即便准备充分每一大地依然提醒所有大自然面前人类始终渺小
English transcript reference

On the afternoon of July 28th, the southern Japanese island of Kyushu was violently shaken by a sudden, powerful earthquake.

The magnitude was first measured at 7.1, then revised to 6.8, but to the locals, that world-spinning feeling left no room for doubt.

The epicenter was only about twenty kilometers from Kumamoto, Kyushu's largest city, and the source was shallow, just ten kilometers down, which is why the shaking was so extreme.

After the quake, Japan's weather agency immediately issued a tsunami warning, cautioning that a one-meter wave might hit the coast.

Mercifully, the feared tsunami never truly came; the warning was lifted soon after, and people's racing hearts eased a little.

But the damage on land had already, unmistakably, happened.

In a small town called Kashima, the entire second floor of a large mall caved in, burying some people in the rubble.

As of now, the quake has killed at least two and injured more than ten, with the full toll still being tallied.

Out of fear of aftershocks, hundreds of thousands of residents were told to evacuate to somewhere safe.

Japan sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire and is one of the most earthquake-prone countries on earth.

From quake-resistant buildings to nationwide drills, they have taken "living with earthquakes" to an extreme.

And yet, no matter how well prepared, every great shudder of the earth reminds everyone: before nature, humans are always small.

Listen again

Try it without the transcript and notice what sounds clearer.

What vocabulary does this episode teach?

词汇
chéngshìcity

最大的城市熊本 = the largest city, Kumamoto.

gǎnjuéfeeling

那种天旋地转的感觉 = that world-spinning feeling.

yuányīnreason / cause

这也是晃动剧烈的原因 = this is why the shaking was so fierce.

ānquánsafe / safety

到安全的地方避难 = shelter somewhere safe.

guójiācountry

地震最频繁的国家之一 = one of the most quake-prone countries.

zìránnature

在大自然面前 = before nature.

zhǔnbèito prepare

准备得再充分 = no matter how well prepared.

dìzhènearthquake

一场大地震 = a big earthquake.

hǎixiàotsunami

发布了海啸警报 = issued a tsunami warning.

yúzhènaftershock

出于对余震的担心 = out of fear of aftershocks.

chèlíto evacuate

被要求撤离家园 = told to evacuate their homes.

* beyond level超纲词

What grammar patterns appear in this episode?

语法

被……

被 marks the passive: "was (done to)".

九州岛,被一场突如其来的大地震狠狠摇晃了一下。

出于对……的担心

出于对 X 的担心 = "out of worry about X".

出于对余震的担心,数十万居民被要求撤离。

即便……,依然……

即便 X,依然 Y = "even if X, still Y".

可即便准备得再充分,每一次大地晃动,依然在提醒所有人。

Proper Nouns

专有名词
日本RìběnJapan九州岛Jiǔzhōu DǎoKyushu Island, southern Japan熊本XióngběnKumamoto, a large city on Kyushu

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