Advertise on podcast: Fluentide · Chinese Listening — HSK 1

Traci Park rejects public sex huts proposal — HSK 2 level, 3:36. Key vocabulary: 家 (jiā) — home; family; 睡觉 (shuìjiào) — to sleep; 钱 (qián) — money; 可以 (kěyǐ) — can; may; 想 (xiǎng) — to want; to think. Grammar: 可以 + 动词 — 可以 before a verb means 'can' or 'may' — it says something is allowed or possible.; 有 / 没有 + 名词 — 有 means 'have' and 没有 means 'have no' or 'there is no'. Use it for possession and existence.. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/traci-park-sex-huts-2026?level=beginner

Greenland Security Deal Signed: Two New US Bases, Sovereignty Stays — HSK 2 level, 1:55. Key vocabulary: 飞机 (fēijī) — airplane; 名字 (míngzi) — name; 高兴 (gāoxìng) — happy; glad; 现在 (xiànzài) — now; 协议 (xiéyì) — agreement; deal. Grammar: A 是 B 的 — Says who something belongs to.; 能 + verb — Says something is allowed or possible.. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/greenland-security-deal-2026?level=beginner

Top Chefs Cook Fine Food and Reach for Taco Bell After Work — HSK 2 level, 1:11. Key vocabulary: 菜 (cài) — dish; vegetable; 做 (zuò) — to make; to do; 吃 (chī) — to eat; 工作 (gōngzuò) — work; job; 钱 (qián) — money. Grammar: 是 + Noun — Use 是 to identify what someone is or describe their job. The noun phrase can include 的 to describe the person or work.; 要 + number + 钱 — cost / need to pay — 要 (yào) here means 'requires' or 'costs'. It is used with money amounts: 要九十九美元 (costs ninety-nine dollars) and 要给很多钱 (need to give a lot of money).. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/top-chefs-taco-bell?level=beginner

Must You Walk 10,000 Steps? Research Finds Benefits Around 7,000 — HSK 2 level, 3:04. Key vocabulary: 走 (zǒu) — to walk; to go; 看 (kàn) — to look at; to watch; to read; 好 (hǎo) — good; well; healthy; 说 (shuō) — to say; to speak; 可以 (kěyǐ) — can; may. Grammar: 多少 + Noun — 多少 means how many/how much and comes before a noun to ask about quantity.; 是……的 — The 是……的 pattern highlights or asks about the source or doer of an action, often in the past.. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/walking-steps-seven-thousand?level=beginner

A Hubei Man Copies Tomb-Robbing Novels and Gets Twelve Years in Prison — HSK 2 level, 1:42. Key vocabulary: 看 (kàn) — to look at; to read; to watch; 东西 (dōngxi) — thing; things; 去 (qù) — to go; 人 (rén) — person; people; 书 (shū) — book. Grammar: 了 for completed action — 了 after a verb shows that an action is completed or a change has happened.; 是……的 structure for identification — 是……的 is used to identify or explain something, often giving a definition or category.. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/tomb-novels-prison-sentence?level=beginner

A Runner Trains on a Gym Treadmill and Wins His First Marathon — HSK 2 level, 1:33. Key vocabulary: 跑 (pǎo) — to run; 冷 (lěng) — cold; 快 (kuài) — fast; quick; 可以 (kěyǐ) — can; may; 喜欢 (xǐhuan) — to like. Grammar: 有 + Person + 叫 + Name — Used to introduce someone's name: 'There is a person called...'; Subject + 在 + Place + Verb — Expresses where an action takes place: 'He runs at the gym.'. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/gym-treadmill-marathon-winner?level=beginner

A Senator Pays a Bakery Bill After Six Years and a Viral Post — HSK 2 level, 2:32. Key vocabulary: 钱 (qián) — money; 说 (shuō) — to say; to speak; 写 (xiě) — to write; 买 (mǎi) — to buy; 看 (kàn) — to look; to read; to watch. Grammar: 有 + Object — Expresses existence: there is/are. Used to introduce people or things.; 是 + Noun — Simple equational sentence pattern: A is B. Used to identify or define something.. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/senator-bakery-bill-six-years?level=beginner

Hospital Booking Bots Lead to Convictions — HSK 2 level, 1:44. Key vocabulary: 号 (hào) — number; appointment number; 医生 (yīshēng) — doctor; 电脑 (diànnǎo) — computer; 医院 (yīyuàn) — hospital; 朋友 (péngyou) — friend; girlfriend. Grammar: 会 + Verb — 会 before a verb shows ability or skill, meaning 'can' or 'know how to'.; 有 + Object + 了 — 有了 + object + 了 shows that something has been obtained or has appeared, marking a change of state.. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/hospital-booking-software?level=beginner

Walmart Robots Struggle With Everyday Goods — HSK 2 level, 3:33. Key vocabulary: 东西 (dōngxi) — thing; things; stuff; 工作 (gōngzuò) — work; job; to work; 可以 (kěyǐ) — can; may; 商店 (shāngdiàn) — store; shop; 电脑 (diànnǎo) — computer. Grammar: 要 + Verb + 来 + Verb — Expresses necessity: something must be done in order to achieve a goal. 要 means 'need to', and 来 connects the means to the purpose.; 是 + Noun + 的 + Noun — A simple definition pattern: 'A is a B that...' Used to explain what something is.. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/walmart-warehouse-robots?level=beginner

Former NFL Player Proves a Maths Conjecture — HSK 2 level, 3:33. Key vocabulary: 学习 (xuéxí) — to study; to learn; 学校 (xuéxiào) — school; 老师 (lǎoshī) — teacher; 工作 (gōngzuò) — to work; work; job; 学生 (xuésheng) — student. Grammar: 了 (completed action) — 了 after a verb shows an action is completed or a change of state.; 以前 / 后来 (time sequence) — 以前 means before, 后来 means later; they order events in a story.. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/nfl-player-math-proof?level=beginner

Coffee Shops Turn Tote Bags Into Branding — HSK 2 level, 1:37. Key vocabulary: 商店 (shāngdiàn) — store; shop; 买 (mǎi) — to buy; 想 (xiǎng) — to want; to think; 小 (xiǎo) — small; little; 多 (duō) — many; much. Grammar: 是……的 — Used to identify or explain something. Here it links a noun to its category or definition.; 因为…… — Introduces a reason or cause. It answers 'why' for the previous statement.. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/coffee-shops-tote-bags?level=beginner

Fast Plane Wi-Fi Brings Noisy Work Calls — HSK 2 level, 3:13. Key vocabulary: 飞机 (fēijī) — airplane; 睡觉 (shuìjiào) — to sleep; 工作 (gōngzuò) — work; job; 电话 (diànhuà) — telephone; phone call; 可以 (kěyǐ) — can; may. Grammar: 有 + Person + 想 + Verb — Expresses that someone wants to do something. 有 here introduces an indefinite person or people.; 可是 + Clause — Used to contrast two clauses, meaning 'but' or 'however'.. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/airplane-wifi-work-calls?level=beginner

2026 Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards finalists revealed 1 Oct 2026: a record 10,000+ entries from 112 countries; 56 finalists (40 single images, 3 under-16, 4 portfolios, 9 videos). Highlights: 'Are You Kidding Me?' (Kevin Lohman, USA) a squirrel launching itself at a great horned owl in Santa Cruz, California; 'Little Godzilla' (Udo Harms, Germany) a reddish squirrel with a mouthful of grass in Hanover; 'Sneeze' (Alexander Hormann, Canada) a moose's runny nose, sneeze and grin at Maligne Lake, Alberta; 'Lessons' (Heather Cudworth, Kenya) an adult elephant giving a younger one a forceful dust bath in Amboseli National Park; under-16 finalist Phiané Oosthuizen (South Africa) a sunbird with a petal stuck to its beak. Conservation partner: Born Free Foundation. Co-founder Tom Sullam: the competition 'has grown into something far bigger than we ever imagined.' Winners announced 8 Dec 2026; two London exhibitions. — HSK 2 level, 3:27. Key vocabulary: 喜欢 (xǐhuan) — to like; 猫 (māo) — cat; 狗 (gǒu) — dog; 高兴 (gāoxìng) — happy; 今天 (jīntiān) — today. Grammar: A 和 B，都是 C — A and B are both C.; 是不是……？ — Isn't it…? (yes/no).. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/comedy-wildlife-awards-2026-finalists?level=beginner

2026 Nobel Prize in Physics (announced 6 Oct 2026) to Francis Halzen, sole laureate (first sole physics winner since Georges Charpak in 1992), 'for decisive contributions to the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the discovery of high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical origin.' Halzen, born 1944 in Tienen, Belgium; PhD KU Leuven 1969; at University of Wisconsin-Madison since 1972. Proposed using Antarctic ice as a neutrino detector in 1988. IceCube: 5,160 optical sensors on 86 strings in hot-water-drilled holes, ~1,450-2,450 m deep near Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, one cubic kilometre of ice; completed December 2010; cost $279 million; 450+ researchers, 58 institutions, 14 countries. Neutrinos ('ghost particles') barely interact: over a billion pass through your hand in the time it takes to read a sentence. Detection via faint blue Cherenkov light from secondary particles. 2013: 28 high-energy neutrinos from beyond the solar system; 2018: a neutrino traced to blazar TXS 0506+056 (~4 billion light-years); 2023: first neutrino image of the Milky Way. Prize: 12 million Swedish kronor. Callback: Fluentide's 3 Oct episode said Wolf Prize winner Jun Ye was a Nobel contender. — HSK 2 level, 3:40. Key vocabulary: 看见 (kànjiàn) — to see; 知道 (zhīdào) — to know; 电脑 (diànnǎo) — computer; 现在 (xiànzài) — now; 东西 (dōngxi) — thing. Grammar: 什么都能 + verb — Can do anything.; ……的时候 — When / while….. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/nobel-physics-halzen-icecube-neutrinos-2026?level=beginner

France lycée (high-school) protests, late Sept-Oct 2026. Began at Lycée Saint-Exupéry in Créteil (Paris south-east suburb) over teacher shortages: ~10% of teaching hours went untaught in public secondary schools in 2024-25 (worst in maths and English); 35 students per class, not enough chairs; crumbling buildings, cafeteria too small, 35°C classrooms; Parcoursup stress. 30 Sept: 250,000+ marched nationwide, 56,000 in Paris. 1 Oct: Interior Ministry said ~1,949 arrested in one day; 5,000-6,000 arrests overall, mostly minors; 1,800+ prosecuted. Injuries among students, school staff and 600+ police; 24 schools burned/ransacked; damage tens of millions of euros; a fire truck burned in Marseille. A 15-year-old lost a hand in a grenade explosion during clashes with riot police in Lens (north). 5 Oct: 589 of France's 3,700 high schools fully or partially closed. PM Sébastien Lecornu; Education Minister Édouard Geffray: 'partial, progressive return to lessons', five measures, funding plan by month's end. Context: tight budget, deficit above EU limit, high debt; presidential election ~6 months away; echoes of gilets jaunes (2018) and 2023 pension protests. — HSK 2 level, 3:21. Key vocabulary: 学生 (xuésheng) — student; 老师 (lǎoshī) — teacher; 学校 (xuéxiào) — school; 椅子 (yǐzi) — chair; 同学 (tóngxué) — classmate. Grammar: 太 + Adj + 了 — Too….; 有的……，有的…… — Some…, some….. Read along with the free interactive transcript — tap any word for instant pinyin and definition, toggle pinyin display, and read the full English translation. https://fluentide.com/episodes/france-high-school-protests-2026?level=beginner