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Illustration for The Ugly Duckling

German · Intermediate

Das hässliche Entlein

Adapted from The Ugly Duckling

By Hans Christian Andersen

A young bird is rejected by the farmyard before discovering where he belongs.

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Intermediate sample in German

Scene 1

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Illustration for the scene “A duck waiting on her nest”

Scene 1 · Intermediate

Eine Ente wartet im Nest

A duck waiting on her nest

German

Auf dem Land war Sommer, und das Wetter hätte kaum schöner sein können. Goldene Getreidefelder, grüner Hafer und aufgeschichtetes Heu leuchteten in der Sonne. Auf seinen langen roten Beinen spazierte der Storch über die Wiesen. Er klapperte auf Ägyptisch, wie seine Mutter es ihm beigebracht hatte. Rings um die Felder erstreckten sich große Wälder mit tiefen Teichen.

English translation

It was summer in the countryside, and the weather could hardly have been more beautiful. Golden fields of grain, green oats, and stacks of hay glowed in the sun. The stork strolled across the meadows on his long red legs. He clattered away in Egyptian, just as his mother had taught him. Great forests with deep ponds stretched all around the fields.

German

Es war eine Freude, durch diese Landschaft zu gehen.

English translation

It was a joy to walk through this landscape.

German

Dicht an einem tiefen Fluss stand ein gemütliches altes Bauernhaus. Vom Haus bis zum Ufer wuchsen Kletten mit riesigen Blättern. Unter den größten hätte ein kleines Kind aufrecht stehen können. Zwischen all den Blättern war es so wild wie in einem dichten Wald.

English translation

Right beside a deep river stood a cozy old farmhouse. From the house to the riverbank, burdock plants with enormous leaves were growing. A small child could have stood upright beneath the biggest ones. Between all those leaves, it was as wild as a dense forest.

German

In diesem geschützten Winkel saß eine Ente auf ihrem Nest und wartete darauf, dass ihre Jungen schlüpften. Langsam verlor sie die Geduld. Die Kleinen ließen sich viel Zeit, und Besuch bekam sie auch kaum. Die anderen Enten schwammen lieber auf dem Fluss, als das glitschige Ufer hinaufzuklettern und sich unter ein Blatt zu setzen, um mit ihr zu plaudern.

English translation

In this sheltered corner, a duck sat on her nest, waiting for her ducklings to hatch. She was slowly losing patience. The little ones were taking a long time, and she hardly ever had visitors, either. The other ducks preferred swimming in the river to climbing up the slippery bank and sitting under a leaf to chat with her.

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