A Chinese podcast · Same story, 4 levels
Lidl 开酒馆：北爱尔兰的卖酒法律
Lidl Opens Its First Pub in Northern Ireland After Six-Year Licensing Battle Over Alcohol Laws
About this story
Lidl opens its first-ever pub, The Middle Ale, in Dundonald near Belfast after a six-year fight with Northern Ireland's strict alcohol licensing laws. HSK 2 Chinese listening practice.
This is an HSK 2 Chinese listening episode that runs about 3 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 12 key vocabulary words such as 买、吃、喝 and walks through 7 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.
English transcript reference
In Northern Ireland, a supermarket opened a pub.
A supermarket is a very big shop.
There are many things in a supermarket.
You buy food and drinks in a supermarket.
Lidl's supermarket is big.
There are many things to eat in the supermarket.
There are also many things to drink in the supermarket.
When people buy food, they also want to buy alcohol.
Lidl is a very big supermarket company.
Many people work in the company.
There are many Lidl supermarkets in Northern Ireland.
Now, Lidl also has a pub.
A pub is a place.
People drink beer in a pub.
When the weather is hot, people drink beer and are happy.
Beer is alcohol.
A supermarket opening a pub — think about it.
Northern Ireland has a law.
The law says: what you can do and what you cannot do.
People in this place all have to follow the law.
The law says: to sell alcohol, you need a licence.
A licence is a thing.
This thing says: you can sell alcohol.
This licence belonged to a pub here.
That pub is not open anymore.
This licence is now Lidl's.
Now, Lidl can sell alcohol.
The law also says: there are not many pubs in this place.
There are not many pubs here, so Lidl can open a pub.
Look: I have an apple.
I say: you eat it.
This apple is yours now.
This is called giving.
Selling is when a person gives you money and you give them something.
Lidl wanted to sell alcohol.
Lidl thought about it for many years.
Lidl thought about it for 6 years.
6 years is a very long time.
Then, 2 pubs in Northern Ireland closed.
These 2 pubs are in the same place as Lidl's supermarket.
2 pubs closed, so Lidl could have a pub.
For 3 or 4 years, pubs here have been closing.
People here have nowhere to go.
In April 2026, many people learned: Lidl is going to open a pub.
In June 2026, the pub opened.
This pub is in Dundonald, next to Belfast.
The pub's name is The Middle Ale.
There are many people in the pub.
There are supermarket things in the pub.
Lidl spent a lot of money.
Lidl spent 500,000 pounds.
Pounds are money.
500,000 pounds is a lot and a lot of money.
Lidl also hired 8 people.
The 8 people work in the pub.
A person who lives here said: this pub is too good.
He said: there are no pubs here anymore.
We want a pub.
Another person said: there is nowhere to go here.
She said: having a pub is good.
Lidl said: we only have one pub.
Lidl said: we don't want to open many pubs.
Will many people go to Lidl's pub?
Listen again
Try it without the transcript and notice what sounds clearer.
What vocabulary does this episode teach?
词汇HSK 1. Opposite is 卖 (sell); the script contrasts 买吃的 with 卖酒.
HSK 1. Used in 吃的东西 (things to eat).
HSK 1. Used in 喝啤酒 (drink beer) and 喝的 (drinks).
HSK 1. Used in 很多东西 (many things) and 吃的东西 (food).
HSK 1. Used in 公司里有很多人工作 (many people work in the company).
HSK 1. Used in 花了很多钱 (spent a lot of money).
HSK 1. Used in 6年 (6 years) and 很多年 (many years).
HSK 1. Used to introduce the law and people's quotes.
HSK 1. A common place noun; appears throughout the script.
HSK 1. Used to define 酒馆 as 一个地方 (a place).
HSK 2. Used in 超市公司 (supermarket company).
HSK 2. Key contrast with 买; used in 卖酒 (sell alcohol).
* beyond level超纲词
What grammar patterns appear in this episode?
语法Expresses existence: 'there is/are ... in/at a place'.
超市里有很多东西。
北爱尔兰有很多 Lidl 超市。
酒馆里有很多人。
是 + Noun
Simple definition pattern: 'A is B'.
超市，是一个很大的商店。
啤酒，是酒。
执照，是一个东西。
要 + Verb + 了
Expresses a change of state or an action about to happen.
Lidl 要开一个酒馆。
你要卖酒，要有一个执照。
Noun + 的
Marks possession or attribution; the noun after 的 can be omitted when clear.
这个执照，是这里的一个酒馆的。
这个执照，是 Lidl 的了。
酒馆的名字，叫 The Middle Ale。
Verb + 了很多 + Noun
Expresses having done something to a large extent or amount.
Lidl 想了很多年。
Lidl 花了很多钱。
叫 + Name
Used to give a name: 'is called ...'.
这，叫给。
酒馆的名字，叫 The Middle Ale。
Proper nouns
专有名词Sources
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