The Hawk and the Nightingale – An English fairy tale with a list of English vocabulary and expressions and a podcast to improve your reading and listening comprehension
Source of story: Gutenberg Project at www.gutenberg.org
A nightingale, sitting aloft upon an oak and singing according to his wont, was seen by a hawk who, being in need of food, swooped down and seized him.
The nightingale, about to lose his life, earnestly begged the hawk to let him go, saying that he was not big enough to satisfy the hunger of a hawk who, if he wanted food, ought to pursue the larger birds.
The hawk, interrupting him, said: “I should indeed have lost my senses if I should let go food ready in my hand, for the sake of pursuing birds which are not yet even within sight.”
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush
used to say that it is better to hold onto something one has than to risk losing it by trying to get something better
Source of definition: https://www.merriam-webster.com/
English vocabulary and expressions
- Wont: habit, custom
- hawk: a large and powerful bird that hunts smaller birds and some other animals
- Swoop: fly down, pounce, dive
- Earnestly: sincerely, seriously
- Hold onto: retain, grasp, clutch
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