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The Ants and the Grasshopper English with Fairy Tales

Last updated on June 8, 2023 by in English Short Stories Category with 4 Comments on The Ants and the Grasshopper English with Fairy Tales, 80 Views and Reading Time: 3 minutes

The Ants and the Grasshopper

The Ants and the Grasshopper

Available in the public domain on Guttenberg.org

THE ANTS were spending a fine winter’s day drying grain collected in the summertime. A Grasshopper, perishing with famine, passed by and earnestly begged for a little food. The Ants inquired of him, “Why did you not treasure up food during the summer?” He replied, “I had not leisure enough. I passed the days in singing.” They then said in derision: “If you were foolish enough to sing all the summer, you must dance supperless to bed in the winter.”

New words and expressions

  1. grains: small hard seeds, such as wheat, barley, etc.
  2. perish: die
  3. earnestly: seriously, gravely
  4. beg for: ask for something seriously
  5. inquire: ask questions, query
  6. treasure up: take great care of something and collect it
  7. derision: mockery, laughing at
  8. supperless: without supper or dinner

Another version of The Ants and the Grasshopper

In a field one summer’s day a grasshopper was hopping about, chirping and singing to its heart’s content. A group of ants walked by, grunting as they struggled to carry plump kernels of corn.

“Where are you going with those heavy things?” asked the grasshopper.

Without stopping, the first ant replied, “To our ant hill. This is the third kernel I’ve delivered today.”

“Why not come and sing with me,” teased the grasshopper, “instead of working so hard?”

“We are helping to store food for the winter,” said the ant, “and think you should do the same.”

“Winter is far away and it is a glorious day to play,” sang the grasshopper.

But the ants went on their way and continued their hard work.

The weather soon turned cold. All the food lying in the field was covered with a thick white blanket of snow that even the grasshopper could not dig through. Soon the grasshopper found itself dying of hunger.

He staggered to the ants’ hill and saw them handing out corn from the stores they had collected in the summer. He begged them for something to eat.

“What!” cried the ants in surprise, “haven’t you stored anything away for the winter? What in the world were you doing all last summer?”

“I didn’t have time to store any food,” complained the grasshopper; “I was so busy playing music that before I knew it the summer was gone.”

The ants shook their heads in disgust, turned their backs on the grasshopper and went on with their work.


About Dr. Mohammad Hossein Hariri Asl

Dr. Mohammad Hossein Hariri Asl is an English and Persian instructor, researcher, inventor, author, blogger, SEO expert, website developer, and the creator of LELB Society. He's got a PhD in TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language). Study our guest posting guidelines for authors.

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4 comments on “The Ants and the Grasshopper English with Fairy Tales”

    • That’s exactly true! In fact, beauty comes from doing your duty. When you force yourself to do your duties and complete your tasks even if you don’t like them, you’ll develop more self-esteem and you can enjoy your free time greatly.
      You must know the difference between ‘most’ and ‘must’.

  1. I have taken two points from this short story:
    1. You should think about the future and consider the situation and decide how you can prevent the difficulties. In another way, you should have foresight.
    2. The ones who work hard in free and easy times, have a better life later.

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