Read this story on Yak Yacker with clickable word help, full story audio, and lesson notes below the text.
This version is written for English-speaking learners who want a friendly reading experience in English.
Once there was a princess. She had a .
One day, the ball a . The princess .
Suddenly, a frog . "Why are you , princess?" he asked.
The princess said, "I my !" The frog said, "I can . But you must be my friend. Let me and sleep on your pillow."
The princess said yes. The frog the ball. But the princess . She did not want a frog friend.
The next day, the frog came to the . ! "Princess, !" The king said, "You must ."
The princess was . She let the frog eat from her plate. She let him sleep on her pillow. Then-surprise! The frog a . They were happy together.
A princess had a shiny gold ball.
The ball fell into a well. The princess cried a lot.
A frog came out and asked why she was crying.
She said she lost her ball. The frog said he would get it if she would be his friend and let him eat with her and sleep on her pillow.
She said yes, but after the frog got the ball, she ran home. She did not want a frog friend.
The next day, the frog came to the castle. The king told the princess to keep her promise.
She let him eat from her plate and sleep on her pillow. The frog turned into a prince. They were happy.
Let's look at some words you met in the story. These are useful for talking about fairy tales and everyday things.
- a princess - a girl from a royal family
- a golden ball - a ball made of gold
- a well - a deep hole with water
- a promise - when you say you will do something
In the story, the frog says, "I can get it." He uses "can" to talk about something he is able to do.
The king says, "You must keep your promise." We use "must" when something is very important to do.
- I can help you. (I am able to help.)
- You must say sorry. (It is important to say sorry.)
- She can run fast.
- He must go home now.
Fairy tales often start with special words. They help us begin a story in a fun way.
Try using "once there was" or "suddenly" the next time you tell a story in English.
- Once there was a little frog.
- Suddenly, a prince appeared!
- Then, they lived happily ever after.
Now you know some new words and grammar. Why not tell the story to a friend?
You can also change the ending. What happens if the frog stays a frog? Have fun with it!
The Frog Prince 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 English Root Words and Prefixes for another useful next step.
