A Chinese podcast · Same story, 4 levels
2:47
马修·麦康纳见到了历史上第一位美国教皇
Matthew McConaughey Meets the First American Pope
This is an HSK 1 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 9 key vocabulary words such as 电影、有名、住 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.
Read the complete story in Chinese. Reveal pinyin and English only when you need them.
Today we are going to talk about two people.
The first one is called Matthew McConaughey.
Matthew McConaughey is an actor.
When you watch a film, the people you see are actors.
Matthew McConaughey is a very famous actor.
A great many people have seen his films.
He is American.
China is a country.
America is a country too.
Right — now the second person.
The second one is called the Pope.
Who is the Pope?
The Pope is a person.
A great, great many people listen to him.
How many people?
A hundred people? No.
No.
A thousand people? Also no.
Also no.
A billion people.
Where does the Pope live?
The place where the Pope lives is called the Vatican.
The Vatican is very, very small.
The Vatican is inside Italy.
Italy is a country too.
The current Pope is a new Pope.
And there is one big new thing about this new Pope.
Listen.
There have been Popes for a great many years.
A thousand years. Two thousand years.
In all those years, no Pope was ever American.
This Pope, the one now, is American.
He is the first American Pope.
Right — and now these two people have met.
Matthew McConaughey went to the Vatican.
His wife went too.
At the Vatican, they saw the Pope.
Matthew McConaughey was very happy.
He talked with the Pope, and took a photo together with him.
One American actor, one American Pope.
Two Americans, meeting in Italy.
Why did Matthew McConaughey go?
He likes reading, and he likes writing.
Last year, he wrote a book.
That book is full of the things he thinks about.
Right now, Matthew McConaughey is in Italy.
What is he doing in Italy?
In Italy, he is making a new film.
Think about it: if you could meet one person, anyone at all, who would you want to meet?
Try it without the transcript and notice what sounds clearer.
看电影 = watch a film. 一个新电影 = a new film.
很有名的演员 = a very famous actor. Literally "has a name".
教皇住在哪里？= Where does the Pope live?
看 is to look; 看见 is to actually see. They saw the Pope.
他写了一本书 = he wrote a book. 本 is the measure word for books.
Taught in the episode through China and America.
Taught in the episode: the people you see when you watch a film.
教 (teaching) + 皇 (emperor). The person a billion people listen to.
第一个美国教皇 = the first American Pope.
* beyond level超纲词
X，是……
The plainest way to define something. Used here to teach 演员 and 教皇.
马修·麦康纳，是一个演员。
教皇，是一个人。
……的时候
"when …". The clause goes before 的时候.
你看电影的时候，你看见的人，是演员。
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