Welcome to this simple English version of Cinderella! In this classic fairy tale, a kind young girl named Cinderella lives with her mean stepmother and stepsisters. They make her do all the hard work, but one day a magical fairy godmother helps her go to a big royal ball. There she meets a handsome prince, but she must hurry home before the magic ends at midnight.
In this free A1 beginner English graded reader from Yak Yacker, you can read the story, listen to the story audio, and click on any word to see its meaning. There are also lesson notes to help you learn new words and grammar. Enjoy this famous story while building your English reading and listening skills.
Cinderella lived with her .
She also lived with her two .
They were not to Cinderella.
Every day, she the house.
She the dishes and the clothes.
She made the beds and the food.
Her stepmother and stepsisters did not .
They sat and looked at dresses.
They said, "Cinderella, ! !"
Poor Cinderella was very .
One day, a came from the palace.
The prince wanted to have a big .
It was a for all the young women.
The stepmother said, "We must buy new !"
The stepsisters were very .
They said, "We want to go to the !"
Cinderella said, "I want to go ."
But her stepmother .
"You? You are a ," she said.
"You have no dress. You stay ."
Cinderella felt very .
She went to her little room and .
Then, a warm filled the room.
A kind old woman stood .
She was Cinderella's fairy .
"Do not cry," the fairy .
"You will go to the ."
Cinderella looked at her old .
The fairy godmother .
She took a big from the garden.
She it with her magic stick.
The pumpkin became a beautiful .
Then, she took six little .
She touched them, and they became .
A became a driver for the carriage.
Then, the fairy looked at Cinderella.
She Cinderella's dress.
Suddenly, she wore a wonderful .
On her feet were two glass .
"Now you can go," the fairy .
"But remember: come home before twelve .
After midnight, the magic ."
Cinderella thanked her and .
At the ball, the prince saw Cinderella.
He thought, "She is the most woman."
He walked to her and said, "."
They together all night.
The prince smiled and did not look at anyone .
Cinderella was so .
But then, the clock started to twelve.
Cinderella the fairy's words.
She of the palace quickly.
One of her glass slippers .
She did not stop. She into the carriage.
At the last strike of twelve, she was .
But the prince her.
He did not know her .
He found only the glass slipper on the .
The next day, the prince began to .
He went from house to .
He said, "The woman whose foot this slipper will be my princess."
Many young women tried on the .
It did not .
At last, the prince came to Cinderella's house.
The two stepsisters tried on the slipper.
Their feet were too .
Then Cinderella said, "May I ?"
Her stepmother laughed again.
But the prince said, "Yes. Everyone must ."
Cinderella sat down. She put on the slipper.
It fit .
The prince looked into her .
"I found you," he said.
Cinderella .
The prince took her to the .
They got married and were always .
Cinderella never cleaned floors .
She and the prince became a kind king and .
Let's look at some important words from Cinderella. These words will help you talk about the story and everyday life.
Try to say each word out loud. The pictures in the story can help you remember.
- stepmother - the wife of your father who is not your real mother
- stepsister - the daughter of your stepmother or stepfather
- ball - a big party where people dance
- fairy godmother - a magic woman who helps someone
- carriage - a pretty vehicle for special people, pulled by horses
- glass slipper - a shoe made of glass
The story of Cinderella uses many past tense verbs. The past tense tells us something happened before now.
Some verbs just add -ed: clean → cleaned, wash → washed. But many common verbs change completely! For example, make → made, say → said, come → came.
- Regular verbs: live → lived, cook → cooked, look → looked
- Irregular verbs: go → went, see → saw, run → ran
- The verb 'to be' is very irregular: I was, you were, she was, they were
The stepsisters often gave orders: 'Cinderella, do this! Do that!' This is the imperative form - just use the verb without 'you'.
When Cinderella wanted to try the slipper, she asked politely: 'May I try?' You can use 'May I...?' to ask for permission in a nice way.
- Imperative: 'Sit down!' 'Come here!' 'Stop!'
- Polite request: 'May I go to the ball?' 'May I help you?'
- Also common: 'Can I...?' (more informal) and 'Could I...?' (very polite)
Now read the story again. Listen to the audio and follow the words. Can you find all the past tense verbs?
Try to tell the story to a friend in your own words. Use the new vocabulary and the past tense. You can be Cinderella's fairy godmother and make your own magic sentences!
- Draw a picture of your favourite part and label three things you see.
- Write one sentence about what Cinderella did yesterday.
A Simple Cinderella Story comes from an older public-domain story tradition and is best known as a public_domain_fairy_tale_retelling. This Yak Yacker article is an original learner retelling based on public-domain source material, so the wording here is simplified for modern learners rather than copied from one old edition.
Older printings, translations, and retellings of this story can vary quite a bit. This version is adapted for A1 Beginner learners studying English.
If you want to keep going, browse more in our English section and review the A1 English Vocabulary List. After that, try 1,200 English Phrases and Expressions for another useful next step.
