A father tries to teach his son math, but the boy only thinks about football. The father realizes explaining to someone not listening is useless, learning the meaning of ‘duì niú tán qín’.
对牛弹琴：爸爸的数学课
李明是个十岁的男孩，他非常喜欢足球。每天晚上，他都努力练习踢球，希望以后能成功。他的爸爸觉得数学很重要，所以想给他上课。
星期六下午，爸爸把数学书给李明，开始教他。爸爸讲得很认真，但李明一直看着窗外的足球场。爸爸问问题，李明回答不清楚。爸爸有点伤心。
妈妈看到这个情况，对爸爸说：“你这是在‘对牛弹琴’！古代有个人给牛弹琴，牛听不懂。现在你给不想听数学的儿子讲课，他也没听进去。”爸爸明白了，他是在浪费自己的话。
后来，爸爸想了一个简单的办法。他先和李明一起踢球，踢得很开心。然后，他用足球的例子来教数学，比如进球的数量。这次，李明学得很快，有了很大的进步。爸爸知道了，教别人需要先了解他们喜欢什么。
Duì Niú Tán Qín: Bà ba de Shùxué Kè
Lǐ Míng shì gè shí suì de nán hái, tā fēi cháng xǐ huān zú qiú. Měi tiān wǎn shang, tā dōu nǔ lì liàn xí tī qiú, xī wàng yǐ hòu néng chéng gōng. Tā de bà ba jué de shù xué hěn zhòng yào, suǒ yǐ xiǎng gěi tā shàng kè.
Xīng qī liù xià wǔ, bà ba bǎ shù xué shū gěi Lǐ Míng, kāi shǐ jiāo tā. Bà ba jiǎng de hěn rèn zhēn, dàn Lǐ Míng yì zhí kàn zhe chuāng wài de zú qiú chǎng. Bà ba wèn wèn tí, Lǐ Míng huí dá bù qīng chu. Bà ba yǒu diǎn shāng xīn.
Mā ma kàn dào zhè ge qíng kuàng, duì bà ba shuō: “Nǐ zhè shì zài ‘duì niú tán qín’! Gǔ dài yǒu gè rén gěi niú tán qín, niú tīng bù dǒng. Xiàn zài nǐ gěi bù xiǎng tīng shù xué de ér zi jiǎng kè, tā yě méi tīng jìn qù.” Bà ba míng bái le, tā shì zài làng fèi zì jǐ de huà.
Hòu lái, bà ba xiǎng le yí gè jiǎn dān de bàn fǎ. Tā xiān hé Lǐ Míng yì qǐ tī qiú, tī de hěn kāi xīn. Rán hòu, tā yòng zú qiú de lì zi lái jiāo shù xué, bǐ rú jìn qiú de shù liàng. Zhè cì, Lǐ Míng xué de hěn kuài, yǒu le hěn dà de jìn bù. Bà ba zhī dào le, jiāo bié rén xū yào xiān liǎo jiě tā men xǐ huān shén me.
Playing the Lute to a Cow: Dad’s Math Lesson (Teaching the idiom ‘to waste words on someone who doesn’t understand’)
Li Ming is a ten-year-old boy who really loves football. Every evening, he practices hard, hoping to succeed in the future. His father thinks math is very important, so he wants to teach him.
On Saturday afternoon, Dad gives the math book to Li Ming and starts teaching. Dad explains very seriously, but Li Ming keeps looking at the football field outside the window. Dad asks questions, but Li Ming’s answers are unclear. Dad feels a bit sad.
Mom sees this situation and says to Dad, “You are ‘playing the lute to a cow’! In ancient times, a man played the lute for a cow, but the cow didn’t understand. Now you are giving a lesson to a son who doesn’t want to listen to math, and he isn’t listening either.” Dad understood; he was wasting his words.
Later, Dad thought of a simple method. He first played football with Li Ming, and they were very happy. Then, he used football examples to teach math, like the number of goals scored. This time, Li Ming learned quickly and made great progress. Dad learned that to teach someone, you first need to understand what they like.
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| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 认真 | rèn zhēn | serious, earnest, conscientious |
| 努力 | nǔ lì | to make an effort, to strive, hardworking |
| 成功 | chéng gōng | success, to succeed |
| 进步 | jìn bù | progress, to make progress |
| 开心 | kāi xīn | happy, joyful |
| 伤心 | shāng xīn | sad, heartbroken |
| 简单 | jiǎn dān | simple, uncomplicated |
| 复杂 | fù zá | complicated, complex |
| 重要 | zhòng yào | important, significant |
| 清楚 | qīng chu | clear, distinct, to understand clearly |
给字句
The ‘给 (gěi)’ sentence structure indicates giving or providing something to someone. It often follows the pattern: Subject + 给 + Recipient + Verb + Object. It highlights the action of transferring something.
爸爸把数学书给李明。
把…给…
This is a specific form of the 把 (bǎ) construction, often used for disposal or handling of objects. The ‘给 (gěi)’ here can indicate the recipient or result of the action, adding emphasis to the transfer or effect.
爸爸把数学书给李明。
对牛弹琴
to waste words on someone who doesn’t understand or listen. Origin: to cows play lute. This idiom is used when someone is trying to explain something to a person who is incapable of understanding it or is not paying attention, making the effort futile.
Chinese Idioms (Chengyu)
对牛弹琴 (duì niú tán qín) is a classic Chengyu from ancient China, often attributed to the philosopher Mouzi. It literally means ‘playing the lute to a cow,’ based on a story where a musician played beautifully for a cow, but the cow ignored the music and kept eating grass. Culturally, it emphasizes the importance of audience receptivity and the futility of sophisticated communication with an unprepared or unwilling listener. In modern usage, it humorously or critically describes situations where one’s elaborate explanations, advice, or efforts are completely lost on the other party, whether in education, work, or daily conversations. It teaches the value of adapting one’s communication style to the listener’s level and interest.
- 李明喜欢什么运动？ (答案)
- 爸爸觉得什么很重要？ (答案)
- 妈妈用什么成语形容爸爸教数学？ (答案)
- 爸爸后来用什么方法教数学？ (答案)
- 李明后来学习有进步吗？ (答案)
- 这个故事告诉我们教别人需要先了解什么？ (答案)
- 爸爸为什么有点伤心？
A. 李明不喜欢足球。 B. 李明不听他讲数学。 C. 数学书很复杂。 (答案) - “对牛弹琴”的古代故事里，牛在做什么？
A. 听音乐。 B. 吃草。 C. 跳舞。 (答案) - 爸爸把什么给李明？
A. 足球。 B. 数学书。 C. 水果。 (答案)
- 妈妈的话让爸爸明白了什么？
A. 数学很简单。 B. 他在浪费话。 C. 李明很努力。 (答案) - 爸爸和李明一起踢球后，李明感觉怎么样？
A. 伤心。 B. 复杂。 C. 开心。 (答案) - 这个故事主要教我们哪个成语？
A. 对牛弹琴。 B. 认真努力。 C. 天天进步。 (答案)
- 李明每天晚上努力练习数学。 (答案)
- 爸爸一开始教数学时，李明在认真听。 (答案)
- “对牛弹琴”的意思是说的话别人听不懂或不想听。 (答案)
- 爸爸后来用的教学方法很复杂。 (答案)
- 李明用足球的例子学数学后有了进步。 (答案)
- 这个故事里的“牛”指的是李明。 (答案)
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