Once there __________ (to be) a very poor miller, who could not even pay his taxes to
the kingdom. Because of this, the king __________ (to order) that he
should be sent to prison. The miller was afraid, so he __________ (to
try) to trick the king:
“Forgive me,” he beseeched, “and I will give you my daughter who can
spin straw into gold.”
”Then bring her to me and I will forgive you,” the king __________ (to
say).
The miller __________ (to be) very sorry for what he __________ (to
say), but it was too late. That night, the king __________ (to take) the
miller’s daughter into a room __________ (to fill) with straw.
“You must spin the straw into gold by morning,” he said, “or you
and your father will be sent to prison.”
Then he __________ (to lock) the door. But the poor girl
__________ (to have) no idea how she was supposed to do
that. She __________ (to strive) hard, but nothing __________
(to happen). Then, she __________ (to begin) to weep bitterly.
Suddenly, the door __________ (to open) and a strange little
man __________ (to enter).
“Good evening, mistress miller. Why are you so sad?”
“The king __________ (to order) me to spin the straw into
gold,” she __________ (to sob).
“I can help you, but you must give me something in return.”
”Here’s my necklace,” she __________ (to say). In response,
the dwarf __________ (to grab) it in an instant.
The little man __________ (to sit) down at the
spinning wheel and, as soon as he __________ (to start) to
spin it, the reel was filled with gold. And he __________ (to
do) so the whole night till he __________ (to finish) spinning
all the straw. By morning, the room __________ (to be) full
of glittering gold. The king was so amazed to see all that
gold that __________ (to sparkle) and __________ (to
shine) incredibly!
But the king __________ (to become) greedier and __________ (to take) the girl into a
bigger room, with more straw than before and __________ (to
order) her to spin all of it into gold.
The little man __________ (to come) to her rescue again. This
time, the girl __________ (to offer) him her golden ring, which
__________ (to be) a gift from her mother.
The king’s greed __________ (to grow) again, though he __________ (to try) to fight it,
feeling compassion for the girl. But he __________ (to lock)
her, anyway, for the third time into a tower __________ (to
fill) with straw and made a promise to her:
“If you can spin all this straw into gold by morning, I promise
to marry you,” he __________ (to say).
Once again, the little man __________ (to come) in, but this
time, the girl had nothing left to offer him.
“Then you must give me your first born child after you get
married,” he __________ (to say).
The girl __________ (to agree), desperate as she
__________ (to be), though she __________ (to promise)
herself never to do that.
A year later, the queen __________ (to give) birth to a
child. She had completely forgotten about the little man. But
one day, he__________ (to come) into her room again.
“I have come to take what you promised me, remember?”
he __________ (to say).
The queen __________ (to offer) him all the riches in the world, hoping she could keep her
baby, but he just wouldn’t hear.
“Something alive is more precious to me than all the riches of this world,” he said.
Then, the little man __________ (to propose) her strange game:
“I give you three days to guess my name. If you guess,
you can keep your baby.
The queen __________ (to spend) the whole night making a
long list with all the names she had ever heard.
The next day, she __________ (to read) all the names to
the little man, but she didn’t guess.
Then, the queen __________ (to sent) messengers to
search for names throughout the kingdom. Even so, she
could not guess the little man’s name.
The third day, the queen __________ (to lose) all hope. She __________ (to send) her
messengers again to search for names.
When she least __________ (to expect), the last
messenger __________ (to return) with a strange story.
“I was just passing through the forest, when I __________
(to see) a funny little man dancing around a big fire,” he
__________ (to tell) the queen. “He was singing:
‘The queen is never going to win,
For my name is Rumpelstiltskin.’”
That night, at first, the queen __________ (to play) a little with the dwarf:
“Is your name Scattin?”
“No, this is not my name,” he __________ (to answer).
“Then, is it Ierarhlon?”
“No, it’s not this either.”
“Could it be Rumpelstiltskin?” she finally __________ (to
ask), smiling.
On hearing this, the little man __________ (to become)
so angry, that he __________ (to turn) blue. And he
__________ (to stamp) his feet so hard, that he
__________ (to make) a hole into the floor.
Rumpelstiltskin __________ (to run off) ashamed and
he was never seen again.
The king __________ (to discover) a new treasure, more precious than
gold: Love. He __________ (to learn) that family makes you the richest
man on earth. So the king and the queen __________ (to live) happily
ever after together with their beautiful daughter.
A. Answer the following questions on the story.
1. Why did the king order the poor miller to go to prison?
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2. What did the miller promise to give the king?
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3. What did the miller’s daughter have to do?
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4. Who arrived while she was crying?
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5. What did she give the little man for him to spin the straw into gold?
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6. What happened the following morning?
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7. What did the king order her to do?
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8. What did she give the little man the second and third time?
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9. What happened a year later?
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10. What did the little man want?
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11. What did the queen offer him?
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12. Did he accept her offer? Why / why not?
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13. What did the little man propose?
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14. Who discovered his name?
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15. How was the little man’s reaction?
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16. What treasure did the king discover?
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2. The king and the miller’s daughter were now rich. Imagine how their life was and write about it!
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