【Abstract】The challenges of translating the Chinese ancient poetry have been discussed， particularly the preservation of symmetric form， the connotation of images and the delivering of rhythm is difficult to address. The essay translates the poem 《水调歌头· 明月几时有》 and also discuss the translation theory and strategies applied including the combination of literal translation and free translation， Skopos theory and the target of readers.
　　【Key words】Chines ancient poem; translation theory; translation strategies
　　【作者简介】王久灵（1990-），女，维吾尔族，湖南桃源人，北京理工大学珠海学院，讲师，硕士，研究方向：法学基础英语。
　　1. Introduction
　　Chinese ancient poetry， which is the well-preserved literary text in the traditional Chinese culture， represents the highly-civilized ancient Chinese culture and preserves the complete cultural identity of the Chinese people. （Yao 2006）. However， great challenges of the Chinese classical poetry translation have always been discussed， for its symmetric form， connotation of image， and a strong sense of rhythm have been taken as the hot potato. In this sense， a good translator is expected to go through several drafts to argue his/her translation is appropriate and rethink how the process of translation is completed. Consequently， the aim of this translation project is to analyze the process of how a Chinese classical poem《水調歌头· 明月几时有》is translated and how some difficulties encountered in the practice of translation are overcame.