Step into the magical world of Cinderella with our free A1 beginner French story! Meet a kind girl, a wicked stepmother, and a fairy godmother who changes everything. This classic fairy tale is retold in simple French so you can read, listen, and enjoy without stress.
Our interactive graded reader includes handy clickable word help every time you get stuck, plus full story audio to improve your listening. There are also lesson notes and a vocabulary review built right in. Whether you're just starting out or brushing up, you'll follow along easily.
Read at your own pace, listen to the narration, and watch your French grow. Cinderella's story is a perfect way to practice the present tense, everyday phrases, and storytelling language-all while having fun.
Cendrillon est une .
Elle habite avec sa et ses deux .
Elles ne sont pas . Cendrillon .
Un jour, une arrive. Le prince .
Les disent :
« Nous allons au ! »
Cendrillon reste à la maison.
Mais une apparaît ! Elle dit : « Tu vas au bal aussi. »
Elle une en .
Cendrillon porte une belle et des .
La fée dit :
« À , tout ! »
Au bal, le prince Cendrillon. Il .
Mais arrive ! Cendrillon . Elle .
Le prince la chaussure. Il la jeune fille.
Il trouve Cendrillon. La chaussure .
Cendrillon et le prince sont .
Cinderella is a young girl.
She lives with her stepmother and two stepsisters.
They are not kind. Cinderella does all the housework.
One day, an invitation arrives. The prince is giving a ball.
The stepsisters say:
"We are going to the ball!"
Cinderella stays home sad.
But a fairy appears! She says: "You are going to the ball too."
She turns a pumpkin into a carriage.
Cinderella wears a beautiful dress and glass slippers.
The fairy says:
"At midnight, everything ends!"
At the ball, the prince sees Cinderella. He dances with her.
But midnight comes! Cinderella runs. She loses a shoe.
The prince finds the shoe. He looks for the girl.
He finds Cinderella. The shoe fits.
Cinderella and the prince are happy.
This simple retelling of Cinderella introduces many French words you'll use every day. Let's look at some of the most important ones.
Recognising these words in context will boost your understanding and confidence.
- la belle-mère (stepmother) and les belles-sœurs (stepsisters)
- le ménage (housework) - Cendrillon fait tout le ménage
- une citrouille (pumpkin) turns into un carrosse (carriage)
- les chaussures en verre (glass slippers)
The whole story is told in the present tense, perfect for describing actions happening now or habits. Notice verbs like habite, fait, dit, va, voit, danse, court, perd, trouve, sont.
When the subject is elle (she), many verbs end in -e or -t. Try to spot this pattern in the story!
- elle habite (she lives) - a regular -er verb
- elle fait (she does/makes) - an irregular verb
- elle va (she goes) - from aller, very irregular
- elles sont (they are) - from être, essential verb
The story is full of short, useful phrases you can borrow for daily conversations. Saying them aloud helps with pronunciation and memory.
Here are a few handy ones to try.
- Nous allons au bal ! - We're going to the ball!
- Tu vas au bal aussi. - You're going to the ball too.
- À minuit, tout finit. - At midnight, everything ends.
- La chaussure va bien. - The shoe fits well.
You've encountered many new words and seen the present tense in action. The best way to make them stick is to experience the story again.
Re-listen, try retelling it in your own words, or even write a short version starring yourself! Little by little, the French will start feeling familiar and natural.
Cendrillon comes from the French / Perrault tradition and is best known as a fairy tale. This Yak Yacker article is an original learner retelling based on Charles Perrault, 1697; public domain, 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. The original audience was usually kids, but this version is adapted for A1 Beginner learners studying French. Use Perrault/traditional plot; avoid Disney elements.
If you want to look into the source tradition, start with Project Gutenberg.
If you want to keep going, browse more in our French section and review the A1 French Vocabulary. After that, try Popular French Phrases for another useful next step.
