Easy Stories in English

The podcast that will take your English from OK to Good and from Good to Great!

The Little Frog with the Big Mouth (Beginner)

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Setting:
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Unfortunately I had a problem with my audio this week and had to use my computer microphone. So the quality is not very good. It will be normal again next week. Sorry!

Also, I said “EasyStoriesInEnglish.com/Frog” when it should be “EasyStoriesInEnglish.com/Frog2“.

You can listen to a levelled-up pre-intermediate version of this story at EasyStoriesInEnglish.com/Frog3.

Transcript

Welcome to Easy Stories in English, the podcast that will take your English from OK to Good, and from Good to Great.

I am Ariel Goodbody, your host for this show. Today’s story is for beginners. The name of the story is The Little Frog with the Big Mouth. You can find a transcript of the episode at EasyStoriesInEnglish.com/Frog2. That’s EasyStoriesInEnglish.com/Frog2. This contains the full story, as well as my conversation before it.

In last week’s episode, I talked about some ideas I had. They were ideas for the podcast. So I want to do maybe some extra things with the podcast. I talked about maybe doing YouTube videos, maybe writing books or online courses. And I put a poll so you can vote and say which thing you would like. The poll is still open. It will be open for another week. So go to EasyStoriesInEnglish.com/Frog2 to find the link and vote in the poll.

If you have your own ideas—maybe there is something you want me to do with the podcast—you can email me at . A lot of you have already voted, so thank you very much, and I look forward to hearing all of your thoughts!

Today’s story I really love. It is a very simple story but I really enjoy it. It has quite a funny ending. I heard it at a conference last summer. So I was at the Agen workshop in the south of France. It is a conference for people who teach languages using storytelling. So of course, for me it was fantastic. And somebody told this story, The Little Frog with the Big Mouth, in Hungarian. So none of us spoke Hungarian, but using pictures the teacher was able to tell the story and we all understood it, and it was so fun, and we were all sitting on the edge of our seats, waiting for the end, and when the end came we laughed so, so much.

So I had a very fun time at the Agen Conference, but it was so hot because it was the summer in thes outh of France. There were two days where it was 42 degrees. Eugh! And despite that, I’m going back this year because the conference was so fantastic. I’m going again.

Recently, I have been playing a lot of videogames. I don’t know if any of you like videogames. I… I don’t know. I like videogames but I go through phases. So maybe I will have six months where I play nothing and then a few months where I really intensely play videogames. So I bought a Playstation 4 last year, but then I didn’t use it very much. But recently I have been playing a lot of videogames.

Videogames are expensive, though. So I only buy games that are on sale. The problem is now, I have about six or seven games to play and some of them are very long games and I get stressed out because I want to play them all but I can’t play them all at the same time! Anyway, at the moment I am playing Life is Strange: Before the Storm, which is a story-based game, and it’s OK. I’m also playing Final Fantasy XIV, which is an online game, because my friend plays it and she really loves it so I want to play it so that we can play together.

Generally, I like RPGs, role-playing games—so role-playing games are usually medieval magic like, uh, The Witcher or Lord of the Rings, where you play a character you created—and I also like story-based games like Life is Strange. I really don’t like shooter games, so like, war games. One, I am very bad at them, but two, I just think they are boring. I want more fantasy.

So, do any of you like playing videogames? I would love to hear. Maybe you play some of the same games as me. Go to EasyStoriesInEnglish.com/Frog2 and leave a comment and tell me what videogames you like. Or maybe you hate videogames. You can tell me that, too. I would love to hear your comment.

OK, I’ll just explain some words that are in today’s story.

A frog is a small, green animal. They make a sound like ribbit ribbit. They live in wet places, like rivers and trees. In the Amazon rainforest, there are many types of frogs. Some are poisonous, so you don’t want to touch them. Frogs eat flies and other insects. They have very long tongues, and they use them to catch flies.

Smile is when you move the sides of your mouth up. You want to show that you are happy. If you like someone, you smile at them. It is like a laugh, but smaller. In some countries, people smile a lot more than in other countries. Sometimes Thailand is called “the land of smiles”.

Taste is how food feels in your mouth. Basically, it is whether it is good food or not. For example, I think McDonald’s tastes good, but some people think it tastes bad. I think dark chocolate tastes better than milk chocolate, but you might think the opposite.

The ground is like the floor, but outside. The ground is brown, but there might be grass on it, and then it will be green. Plants like trees and flowers drink water from under the ground.

A worm is a small, pink insect. Worms are long, a bit like a snake. But they don’t have any eyes or a mouth. Worms live underground, and you find them a lot in gardens. Birds love to eat worms. They pull them out of the ground and eat them. Most people think worms are horrible.

Hop is a small jump. So rabbits and frogs hop instead of jumping, because they are very small.

Hay is a type of dried grass. Hay is used on farms to feed animals. For example, horses eat hay. Hay is yellow and hard, and you pack it in big squares.

Your tongue is the long pink think inside your mouth. You use your tongue to speak. For example, if I say th, I am putting my tongue between my teeth. Tongues are also important for eating and drinking. If you don’t like someone, you can stick your tongue out at them. Dogs often stick their tongues out when they breathe.

Continue is when you started doing something and you keep doing it. For example, I started this podcast in January last year, and I am still doing it. So I continue to make Easy Stories in English. Maybe you start reading in the morning, and then you take a break for lunch. After lunch, you can continue reading.

Complain is when you only talk about how things are bad. Usually it is children who complain. For example, children might say, ‘I don’t want to go to the supermarket! I don’t like that food! I want a horse like that girl!’ They complain all the time.

If you enjoy the podcast and want more, you can support us on Patreon. For just $2 a month you can get exercises with each episode, and for $5 you get an extra story every month. You can support us at Patreon.com/EasyStoriesInEnglish. That’s Patreon.com/EasyStoriesInEnglish.

A big thank-you to our new patrons, Vladas Gaidys, Zdeněk Lev, Krystian Kuna and Yuu Shimizu. Thank you so much. Your support really means a lot to us.

OK, so listen and enjoy!

The Little Frog with the Big Mouth

Once there was a little frog. He lived in the forest next to a river. He was very small, about the size of a tennis ball. But his mouth was very big. When he smiled, his smile went from one ear to the other. Everyone called him the Little Frog with the Big Mouth.

Every day, the Little Frog with the Big Mouth ate flies. In the morning, he woke up at seven o’clock and had five flies for breakfast. At one o’clock in the afternoon he had fifteen flies for lunch. Then he slept a bit, and at seven o’clock in the evening he had ten flies for dinner. There were lots of flies in the forest, and the Little Frog with the Big Mouth was good at catching them.

But flies do not taste very nice, and when you eat the same thing day after day, you start to get a bit bored.

One day, the Little Frog with the Big Mouth woke up and thought, “I don’t feel like eating flies today. I have eaten flies every day of my life. Enough! I want to eat something different.”

But the Little Frog with the Big Mouth had never eaten anything else before. He didn’t know what other food there was. So he went through the forest, hop, hop, hop, to find other food.

The little frog came out of the forest and found a farm.

“It looks like there is lots of food here,” thought the frog. He thought the house must be food, because it was pretty and red. “But I can’t eat that. It’s too big!”

The Little Frog with the Big Mouth hopped around the house until he found another animal. The animal was small and white, and had a red thing on its head. Actually, to the frog it looked quite big, because he was only very little.

‘Who are you?’ said the frog.

The white animal looked down. ‘Buccaw! I am a chicken.’

‘And what do you eat?’ said the frog. ‘I eat flies. Well, I have eaten flies every day, and I don’t want to eat them anymore.’

‘I eat worms!’ said the chicken.

‘Worms? What are worms?’ said the little frog.

The chicken smiled and put her head in the ground. A moment later, she came back up with a big, fat worm in her mouth. She ate it up and said, ‘Mmm, delicious!’

‘Eww!’ said the frog. ‘Worms might be nice for you, but they are not nice for frogs like me.’

So the Little Frog with the Big Mouth hopped around the farm until he found another animal. This animal was very big. It was brown, and had long black hair, and it looked very strong.

‘Hello!’ said the little frog. ‘Who are you?’

‘Neeeeeeigh! I am a horse.’

‘And what do you eat?’ said the frog.

‘I eat hay,’ said the horse.

‘What’s hay?’

The horse went into a box and ate some long yellow things. They looked very dry.

‘Eww!’ said the frog. ‘Hay might be nice for you, but it is not nice for frogs like me.’

So the Little Frog with the Big Mouth hopped around the farm until he found another animal. This animal was pink and very, very fat.

‘Hello! Who are you?’ asked the frog.

‘Oink oink. I am a pig.’

‘What do you eat?’

‘I eat lots of things,’ said the pig. ‘But my favourite food is shoes.’

‘What are shoes?’ asked the frog.

The pig picked up a big heavy black thing in his mouth. It said Doc Marten’s on the side. The pig ate it up very quickly.

‘Eww!’ said the frog. ‘Shoes might be nice for you, but they are not nice for me.’

So the Little Frog with the Big Mouth hopped away from the farm.

‘I don’t think I will ever find nice food!’ the little frog said to himself.

He hopped into some long grass. There he did not find an animal, but an animal found him. It was very long and had no arms and legs, but it did have a long pink tongue. It didn’t look very nice.

‘Who are you?’ said the frog.

‘Ssssssss. I am a snake.’

‘What do you eat?’ said the frog.

‘I eat little frogs with big mouths,’ said the snake.

‘Oh!’ said the little frog. He made his mouth very small, and said, ‘I’m a little frog with a little mouth. There are no little frogs with big mouths here. Bye!’

And the frog hopped home as fast as he could.

“You know what,” thought the frog, “maybe flies are not that bad.”

So he ate flies for dinner, and he continued to eat flies for the rest of his life, and never again did he complain about his food.

THE END

If you enjoyed the story, please consider supporting us on Patreon. Go to Patreon.com/EasyStoriesInEnglish. That’s Patreon.com/EasyStoriesInEnglish. For just a few dollars a month you can get extra episodes, exercises, and much more. Thank you for listening, and until next week.

Comments

49 responses to “The Little Frog with the Big Mouth (Beginner)”

  1. Thu Ya Soe avatar
    Thu Ya Soe

    It’s very nice story. Thank you for the podcast. Have a nice day.

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      You’re very welcome, Thu Ya Soe! 🙂

      1. Emre avatar

        Hello;
        I heard you talk about video games in podcast.I like video games a lot.Generally i play RPG games like you.(etc. Witcher).İf you want to RPG games you must have a lot time but I dont have time enough for this.Anyway thank you for the story. I try to listen your all stories. They are very enjoyable. 🙂

        1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
          Ariel Goodbody

          I haven’t played the Witcher yet, unfortunately. I just bought Persona 5 and am looking forward to playing it very much 🙂 And I don’t have a lot of time, I just play games 5 years after they come out!

  2. Teodóra Virág avatar
    Teodóra Virág

    I’m from Hungary and I heard this story from my mom when I was a kid. I really enjoyed this podcast.
    Thank you!

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      There’s a song for it, too, isn’t there? I still remember the phrase “nagy száj u béka” (apologies if I spelled it wrong) 🙂

  3. Rony David Gurión Llanes avatar
    Rony David Gurión Llanes

    awesome, this will be great for me because I am learning English. Thank again.

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      You’re very welcome, Rony 🙂

  4. Sobi avatar

    I read stories and I enjoy it

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      I’m glad, Sobi! Thank you 🙂

  5. Enes Ozen avatar
    Enes Ozen

    Hi bro. I started learn english and everyday I listen, read and translate your stories. It’s very beneficial.

    Thank You!

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      Thanks for the kind comment, Enes! You’re very welcome 🙂

      1. Ceylin Berra avatar
        Ceylin Berra

        To be frank , I like animals and farmlife very much .So , the story , drew my attention . And I enjoyen reading a lot

        1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
          Ariel Goodbody

          I’m glad you enjoyed it, Ceylin. I love animals, too 🙂

  6. Mohamed avatar
    Mohamed

    Thank you so much

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      You’re very welcome, Mohamed 🙂

  7. Mehdi avatar

    Hi Ariel, how are you doing?!
    i love playing video games, actually we create games, not big and expensive games. we are a small group and we hope to make progress and expand our group and create big games.
    i also play fifa 20 gears 5 and resident evil 2 remake if you like horror game i recommend Resident evil 2 to you.

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      Ooh, cool! I have a lot of friends who do indie game development. What kind of games do you make?

      I don’t like horror films and horror games. I get scared easily!

      1. Mehdi avatar

        we are going to make a survival horror game that name is Dr saviour.
        its about a Doctor who wants to save and rescue people of the world from an epidemic.

        1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
          Ariel Goodbody

          Wow, that sounds cool! I wish you the best of luck in completing it 🙂

          1. Mehdi avatar

            Thank you my friend

  8. Soraya Vilas Bôas Hussein avatar
    Soraya Vilas Bôas Hussein

    I love it. Thank you so much Ariel😌

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      You’re very welcome, Soraya! 🙂

  9. Giovano Marson avatar
    Giovano Marson

    Amazing!

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      Thanks, Giovano!

  10. Claudio avatar
    Claudio

    Hey there! Love your site and content! Could I become a contributor?

  11. Umut avatar

    Thanks for effort.

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      You’re very welcome, Umut!

  12. Javad Esmaili avatar
    Javad Esmaili

    very enjoyable and funny story.
    The story wants to tell us we have to be satisfied to our situation.

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      Thanks again, Javad! Yes, it’s an important lesson to learn!

  13. Arbaz avatar

    Thank you so much brother

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      You’re very welcome, Arbaz! 🙂

  14. Avinash 🇮🇳 avatar
    Avinash 🇮🇳

    Thanks you very very much for simple stories, I am able to read and understand these stories because off your hard work.
    Your stories is helping people to learn English.

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      Thanks so much for your comment, Avinash 🙂

  15. Queue avatar

    Recently I don’t like playing in video games. Because they don’t give me satisfited.
    But my favorite games are:
    1. TES (oblivion and skyrim)
    2. Warcraft 3 (reign of chaos and frozen throne)
    3. Mafia 1 and Mafia 2.
    4. Grand Theft Auto.
    5. Dota 2.

    The most favorite genre – fantasy and science fantasy. I like reading and listen to Norse mythology. I like watching gameplay God of War and etc.
    I want to begin listening podcasts about it. But..
    I read transcript and understand that I’m don’t know only 20-50 words of whole text.
    I begin to listening and understand absolutely nothing even words which I know. Understanding about 20%.
    Therefore I’m here. I hope that soon I can understand English speech.
    Thank you very much for this podcasts.
    By the way, my level English – beginner. Sorry for mistakes.
    I have a question. How rightly to use podcasts?
    I’m reading and listening to them in one time. Afterwards I’m just listening without text.
    I really want improve my listening skill and can’t find worth advises about it.

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      Thanks for the comment, Queue. Oh my God, I LOVE Oblivion! I enjoyed Skyrim, too, but Oblivion was really my favourite. I haven’t played the other games (apart from a bit of GTA), unfortunately.

      And I also love SF/Fantasy! Yes, there are many difficult words in podcasts about mythology. If you keep working at it, though, you will gradually understand! It sounds like you’re using a good strategy to listen. Right now, the main focus should be to improve your vocabulary, and reading and listening is the best way to do that. Then, when you get to a higher level you can focus on learning to listen to fast speech. If you want me to talk in more detail about this, why not come to the stream on Saturday and I’ll answer it for everyone? I’m sure lots of people would find it helpful. If you can’t come, you can still email me the question at and I’ll answer it on stream, so you can watch it later 🙂

      1. Queue avatar

        Thank you very much for the big expanded reply in my mail. And for this answer here.
        I will be on your stream, thanks you a lot)
        And maybe I will ask you a pair of questions)

  16. Merve Ece avatar
    Merve Ece

    I enjoyed this story. Because the message is ” be yourself”. But I think this story for little children.

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      Thanks for the comment, Merve! I think this story is fun for people of all ages 🙂

      1. Merve Ece avatar
        Merve Ece

        I agree. But it seemed to me because it like fairy tale a little

  17. Cansu avatar

    The story was beautiful. I liked it very much. The took the frog lesson.

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      Thanks for the comment, Cansu! I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂

  18. Medine avatar
    Medine

    I think flies are the best food for frogs. I think the frog can eat insect. I think we shouldn’t complain about what we have.

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      Very true, Medine! 🙂

  19. Bilgenur avatar
    Bilgenur

    I enjoyed this story . Very fun . This story very exciting

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      Thanks, Bilgenur! 🙂

  20. Zuleykha Aghayeva avatar
    Zuleykha Aghayeva

    I believe that podcasts can help me for my listening and speaking.Thank you very much for this

    1. Ariel Goodbody avatar
      Ariel Goodbody

      You’re very welcome, Zuleykha! 🙂

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