太湖是中国东部的一个淡水湖，占地面积2250平方公里，是中国第三大淡水湖，仅次于鄱阳和洞庭。太湖约有90个岛屿，大小从几平方米到几平方公里不等。太湖以其独特的“太湖石”而闻名，太湖石常用于装饰中国传统园林。太湖也以高产的捕鱼业闻名。自上世纪70年代后期以来，捕捞鱼蟹对沿湖的居民来说极为重要，并对周边地区的经济作出了重大贡献。太湖地区是中国陶瓷（ceramics）业基地之一，其中宜兴的陶瓷厂家生产举世闻名的宜兴紫砂壶（clay teapot）。（194字）

Taihu Lake is a freshwater lake in east China and the third largest one in China after Poyang Lake and Dongting Lake, with an area of 2,250 square kilometers. The lake houses about 90 islands ranging in size from a few square meters to several square kilometers. Taihu Lake is famous for its unique "Taihu Stone", which is commonly used to decorate traditional Chinese gardens. It is also known for its productive fishing industry. Since the late 1970s, harvesting fish and crabs has been invaluable to people living along the lake and has contributed significantly to the economy of the surrounding areas. Besides, the Taihu Lake region is one of China’s ceramics industry bases. For instance, Yixing pottery factory produces the world-renowned Yixing clay teapots.