BBC Learning English
Words in the News
Giant tuna is sold for record $736,000

6

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January 2012

Words in the News

© British Broadcasting Corporation 2011

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bbclearningenglish.com

A bluefin tuna has been sold at a Tokyo market for nearly three-quarters of a million
dollars, the most ever paid for a single fish. The 269kg tuna was bought by a local
restaurant owner. The BBC's Roland Buerk reports from Tokyo.

The first auction of the New Year at Tokyo's Tsukiji fish market is always closely
watched - high prices are a tradition.

But when the bidding was over the bluefin tuna had become the most expensive fish in
history - 56.49m yen, nearly three-quarters of a million dollars.

It smashed the previous record set last year of 32.49m yen.

The buyer was the owner of a chain of sushi restaurants. He said he wanted to liven up
Japan and help the nation recover from last year's earthquake and tsunami.

The fish was caught off Aomori, just north of the coast battered by the disaster.

At 269kg it's a giant. But even so when cut up into sushi each mouthful works out at
5,000 yen, more than $65.

The restaurant chain though will sell it for its usual tuna prices, between $1.60 and $5.40
per piece, depending on the cut.

Roland Buerk, BBC News, Tokyo

Words in the News

© British Broadcasting Corporation 2011

Page 2 of 2

bbclearningenglish.com

Vocabulary and definitions

auction

public sale where the person who offers most money
receives the goods

closely watched

followed with particular attention

the bidding

the offering of money at an auction

smashed (a record)

easily broke (a record)

a chain (of restaurants)

a group of restaurants with similar appearance, name
and shared central management

to liven up

to bring happiness and cheer

recover

to go back to the way it was (before a disaster, illness
etc)

battered by (something)

badly affected by (something)

mouthful

a piece of food small enough to be eaten in one bite

works out at

is calculated to be

More on this story:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-16424192

Read and listen to the story and the vocabulary online:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/language/wordsinthenews/2012/01/120106_witn_tuna1.shtml