Clever Hans
A free A2-level English story for language learners, readable online in 7 languages, with an option to listen via the free Storyteller app.
A foolish young man follows his mother's advice so literally, one gift at a time, that he manages to ruin every single one.
The mother of Hans said, “Whither away, Hans?” Hans answered, “To Grethel.” “Behave well, Hans.” “Oh, I’ll behave well. Good-bye, mother.” “Good-bye, Hans.” Hans comes to Grethel, “Good day, Grethel.” “Good day, Hans. What dost thou bring that is good?” “I bring nothing, I want to have something given me.” Grethel presents Hans with a needle. Hans says, “Good-bye, Grethel.” “Good-bye, Hans.”
Ibu Hans berkata, "Mau ke mana, Hans?" Hans menjawab, "Ke rumah Grethel." "Berkelakuanlah baik, Hans." "Oh, aku akan berkelakuan baik. Sampai jumpa, Ibu." "Sampai jumpa, Hans." Hans tiba di rumah Grethel, "Selamat siang, Grethel." "Selamat siang, Hans. Apa yang kau bawa yang bagus?" "Aku tidak membawa apa-apa, aku ingin diberi sesuatu." Grethel memberi Hans sebuah jarum. Hans berkata, "Sampai jumpa, Grethel." "Sampai jumpa, Hans."
Hans takes the needle, sticks it into a hay-cart, and follows the cart home. “Good evening, mother.” “Good evening, Hans. Where hast thou been?” “With Grethel.” “What didst thou take her?” “Took nothing; had something given me.” “What did Grethel give thee?” “Gave me a needle.” “Where is the needle, Hans?” “Stuck it in the hay-cart.” “That was ill done, Hans. Thou shouldst have stuck the needle in thy sleeve.” “Never mind, I’ll do better next time.”
Hans mengambil jarum itu, menancapkannya ke gerobak jerami, dan mengikuti gerobak itu pulang. "Selamat malam, Ibu." "Selamat malam, Hans. Dari mana saja kau?" "Dari rumah Grethel." "Apa yang kau bawakan untuknya?" "Tidak membawakan apa-apa; aku diberi sesuatu." "Apa yang Grethel berikan padamu?" "Memberiku sebuah jarum." "Di mana jarum itu, Hans?" "Kutancapkan di gerobak jerami." "Itu tidak baik, Hans. Seharusnya kau tancapkan jarum itu di lengan bajumu." "Tak apa, lain kali aku akan lebih baik."
“Whither away, Hans?” “To Grethel, mother.” “Behave well, Hans.” “Oh, I’ll behave well. Good-bye, mother.” “Good-bye, Hans.”
"Mau ke mana, Hans?" "Ke rumah Grethel, Bu." "Berkelakuanlah baik, Hans." "Oh, aku akan berkelakuan baik. Sampai jumpa, Ibu." "Sampai jumpa, Hans."
Hans comes to Grethel. “Good day, Grethel.” “Good day, Hans. What dost thou bring that is good?” “I bring nothing; I want to have something given to me.” Grethel presents Hans with a knife. “Good-bye, Grethel.” “Good-bye Hans.”
Hans tiba di rumah Grethel. "Selamat siang, Grethel." "Selamat siang, Hans. Apa yang kau bawa yang bagus?" "Aku tidak membawa apa-apa; aku ingin diberi sesuatu." Grethel memberi Hans sebuah pisau. "Sampai jumpa, Grethel." "Sampai jumpa, Hans."
Hans takes the knife, sticks it in his sleeve, and goes home. “Good evening, mother.” “Good evening, Hans. Where hast thou been?” “With Grethel.” “What didst thou take her?” “Took her nothing, she gave me something.” “What did Grethel give thee?” “Gave me a knife.” “Where is the knife, Hans?” “Stuck in my sleeve.” “That’s ill done, Hans, thou shouldst have put the knife in thy pocket.” “Never mind, will do better next time.” “Whither away, Hans?” “To Grethel, mother.” “Behave well, Hans.” “Oh, I’ll behave well. Good-bye, mother.” “Good-bye, Hans.”
Hans mengambil pisau itu, menyelipkannya di lengan bajunya, dan pulang ke rumah. "Selamat malam, Ibu." "Selamat malam, Hans. Dari mana saja kau?" "Dari rumah Grethel." "Apa yang kau bawakan untuknya?" "Tidak membawakan apa-apa, ia memberiku sesuatu." "Apa yang Grethel berikan padamu?" "Memberiku sebuah pisau." "Di mana pisau itu, Hans?" "Kuselipkan di lengan bajuku." "Itu tidak baik, Hans, seharusnya kau masukkan pisau itu ke sakumu." "Tak apa, lain kali akan lebih baik." "Mau ke mana, Hans?" "Ke rumah Grethel, Bu." "Berkelakuanlah baik, Hans." "Oh, aku akan berkelakuan baik. Sampai jumpa, Ibu." "Sampai jumpa, Hans."
Hans comes to Grethel. “Good day, Grethel.” “Good day, Hans. What good thing dost thou bring?” “I bring nothing, I want something given me.” Grethel presents Hans with a young goat. “Good-bye, Grethel.” “Good-bye, Hans.” Hans takes the goat, ties its legs, and puts it in his pocket. When he gets home it is suffocated. “Good evening, mother.” “Good evening, Hans. Where hast thou been?” “With Grethel.” “What didst thou take her?” “Took nothing, she gave me something.” “What did Grethel give thee?” “She gave me a goat.” “Where is the goat, Hans?” “Put it in my pocket.” “That was ill done, Hans, thou shouldst have put a rope round the goat’s neck.” “Never mind, will do better next time.”
Hans tiba di rumah Grethel. "Selamat siang, Grethel." "Selamat siang, Hans. Apa hal bagus yang kau bawa?" "Aku tidak membawa apa-apa, aku ingin diberi sesuatu." Grethel memberi Hans seekor anak kambing. "Sampai jumpa, Grethel." "Sampai jumpa, Hans." Hans mengambil kambing itu, mengikat kakinya, dan memasukkannya ke sakunya. Ketika ia sampai di rumah, kambing itu sudah mati lemas. "Selamat malam, Ibu." "Selamat malam, Hans. Dari mana saja kau?" "Dari rumah Grethel." "Apa yang kau bawakan untuknya?" "Tidak membawakan apa-apa, ia memberiku sesuatu." "Apa yang Grethel berikan padamu?" "Ia memberiku seekor kambing." "Di mana kambing itu, Hans?" "Kumasukkan ke sakuku." "Itu tidak baik, Hans, seharusnya kau ikatkan tali di leher kambing itu." "Tak apa, lain kali akan lebih baik."
“Whither away, Hans?” “To Grethel, mother.” “Behave well, Hans.” “Oh, I’ll behave well. Good-bye, mother.” “Good-bye, Hans.” Hans comes to Grethel. “Good day, Grethel.” “Good day, Hans. What good thing dost thou bring?” “I bring nothing, I want something given me.” Grethel presents Hans with a piece of bacon. “Good-bye, Grethel.” “Good-bye, Hans.”
"Mau ke mana, Hans?" "Ke rumah Grethel, Bu." "Berkelakuanlah baik, Hans." "Oh, aku akan berkelakuan baik. Sampai jumpa, Ibu." "Sampai jumpa, Hans." Hans tiba di rumah Grethel. "Selamat siang, Grethel." "Selamat siang, Hans. Apa hal bagus yang kau bawa?" "Aku tidak membawa apa-apa, aku ingin diberi sesuatu." Grethel memberi Hans sepotong daging asap. "Sampai jumpa, Grethel." "Sampai jumpa, Hans."
Hans takes the bacon, ties it to a rope, and drags it away behind him. The dogs come and devour the bacon. When he gets home, he has the rope in his hand, and there is no longer anything hanging to it.
Hans mengambil daging asap itu, mengikatkannya pada seutas tali, dan menyeretnya di belakangnya. Anjing-anjing datang dan melahap daging asap itu. Ketika ia sampai di rumah, tali itu masih ada di tangannya, tetapi tidak ada lagi apa pun yang tergantung padanya.
“Good evening, mother.” “Good evening, Hans.” “Where hast thou been?” “With Grethel.” “What didst thou take her?” “I took her nothing, she gave me something.” “What did Grethel give thee?” “Gave me a bit of bacon.” “Where is the bacon, Hans?” “I tied it to a rope, brought it home, dogs took it.” “That was ill done, Hans, thou shouldst have carried the bacon on thy head.” “Never mind, will do better next time.” “Whither away, Hans?” “To Grethel, mother.” “Behave well, Hans.” “I’ll behave well. Good-bye, mother.” “Good-bye, Hans.”
"Selamat malam, Ibu." "Selamat malam, Hans." "Dari mana saja kau?" "Dari rumah Grethel." "Apa yang kau bawakan untuknya?" "Aku tidak membawakan apa-apa, ia memberiku sesuatu." "Apa yang Grethel berikan padamu?" "Memberiku sepotong daging asap." "Di mana daging asap itu, Hans?" "Kuikatkan pada tali, kubawa pulang, anjing-anjing mengambilnya." "Itu tidak baik, Hans, seharusnya kau bawa daging asap itu di atas kepalamu." "Tak apa, lain kali akan lebih baik." "Mau ke mana, Hans?" "Ke rumah Grethel, Bu." "Berkelakuanlah baik, Hans." "Aku akan berkelakuan baik. Sampai jumpa, Ibu." "Sampai jumpa, Hans."
Hans comes to Grethel. “Good day, Grethel.” “Good day, Hans.” “What good thing dost thou bring?” “I bring nothing, but would have something given.” Grethel presents Hans with a calf. “Good-bye, Grethel.” “Good-bye, Hans.”
Hans tiba di rumah Grethel. "Selamat siang, Grethel." "Selamat siang, Hans." "Apa hal bagus yang kau bawa?" "Aku tidak membawa apa-apa, tapi ingin diberi sesuatu." Grethel memberi Hans seekor anak sapi. "Sampai jumpa, Grethel." "Sampai jumpa, Hans."
Hans takes the calf, puts it on his head, and the calf kicks his face. “Good evening, mother.” “Good evening, Hans. Where hast thou been?” “With Grethel.” “What didst thou take her?” “I took nothing, but had something given me.” “What did Grethel give thee?” “A calf.” “Where hast thou the calf, Hans?” “I set it on my head and it kicked my face.” “That was ill done, Hans, thou shouldst have led the calf, and put it in the stall.” “Never mind, will do better next time.”
Hans mengambil anak sapi itu, meletakkannya di atas kepalanya, dan anak sapi itu menendang wajahnya. "Selamat malam, Ibu." "Selamat malam, Hans. Dari mana saja kau?" "Dari rumah Grethel." "Apa yang kau bawakan untuknya?" "Aku tidak membawa apa-apa, tapi diberi sesuatu." "Apa yang Grethel berikan padamu?" "Seekor anak sapi." "Di mana anak sapi itu, Hans?" "Kuletakkan di atas kepalaku dan ia menendang wajahku." "Itu tidak baik, Hans, seharusnya kau tuntun anak sapi itu, dan masukkan ke kandang." "Tak apa, lain kali akan lebih baik."
“Whither away, Hans?” “To Grethel, mother.” “Behave well, Hans.” “I’ll behave well. Good-bye, mother.” “Good-bye, Hans.”
"Mau ke mana, Hans?" "Ke rumah Grethel, Bu." "Berkelakuanlah baik, Hans." "Aku akan berkelakuan baik. Sampai jumpa, Ibu." "Sampai jumpa, Hans."
Hans comes to Grethel. “Good day, Grethel.” “Good day, Hans. What good thing dost thou bring?” “I bring nothing, but would have something given.” Grethel says to Hans, “I will go with thee.”
Hans tiba di rumah Grethel. "Selamat siang, Grethel." "Selamat siang, Hans. Apa hal bagus yang kau bawa?" "Aku tidak membawa apa-apa, tapi ingin diberi sesuatu." Grethel berkata kepada Hans, "Aku akan ikut denganmu."
Hans takes Grethel, ties her to a rope, leads her to the rack and binds her fast. Then Hans goes to his mother. “Good evening, mother.” “Good evening, Hans. Where hast thou been?” “With Grethel.” “What didst thou take her?” “I took her nothing.” “What did Grethel give thee?” “She gave me nothing, she came with me.” “Where hast thou left Grethel?” “I led her by the rope, tied her to the rack, and scattered some grass for her.” “That was ill done, Hans, thou shouldst have cast friendly eyes on her.” “Never mind, will do better.”
Hans membawa Grethel, mengikatnya dengan tali, menuntunnya ke tempat pakan, dan mengikatnya erat-erat di sana. Kemudian Hans pergi menemui ibunya. "Selamat malam, Ibu." "Selamat malam, Hans. Dari mana saja kau?" "Dari rumah Grethel." "Apa yang kau bawakan untuknya?" "Aku tidak membawakan apa-apa untuknya." "Apa yang Grethel berikan padamu?" "Ia tidak memberiku apa-apa, ia ikut denganku." "Di mana kau tinggalkan Grethel?" "Kutuntun dengan tali, kuikat di tempat pakan, dan kutaburkan rumput untuknya." "Itu tidak baik, Hans, seharusnya kau memandangnya dengan tatapan penuh kasih." "Tak apa, akan kulakukan lebih baik."
Hans went into the stable, gathered up all the calves’ and sheep’s eyes he could find, and tossed them to Grethel as a token of his goodwill. Then Grethel became angry, tore herself loose and ran away, and became the bride of Hans.
Hans pun masuk ke kandang, mengumpulkan semua mata anak sapi dan domba yang bisa ia temukan, lalu memberikannya kepada Grethel sebagai tanda niat baik. Grethel pun menjadi marah, melepaskan diri dari ikatannya dan lari, lalu menjadi pengantin Hans.
