The King and the Painter

Once there was a king, who liked to paint pictures, but his pictures were bad and nobody liked them. The people to whom the king showed his pictures were afraid of him and they said that the pictures were good. One day the king showed his pictures to a great painter who lived in that country and said, “What do you think of my pictures? Am I a good painter or not?” The painter looked at the king’s picture and said, “My king, the pictures are bad and you will never be a good painter.” The king was very angry and sent the painter to prison. After two years the king wanted to see the painter again. When the painter came the king gave him a good dinner and said, “Now you are a freeman and I am your friend.” So he talked kindly to the painter. After dinner the king showed his pictures to the painter again and asked, “Well, how do you like them now?” The painter did not answer. He turned to the soldiers and said, “Take me back to prison!”

1. Match the words with their descriptions. There is one variant you don’t need to use.

1) A king

2) A painter

3) A soldier

4) A servant

5) A prison


a) A person who was not afraid of the king.

b) A place where the painter spent two years.

c) A person who was a bad painter.

d) A person whom the painter asked to take him back to prison.

2. Write short answers to the questions.

1. Who liked to paint pictures?

2. The people were afraid of the King, weren’t they?

3. What did the painter look at?

4. When did the king show his pictures to the painter again?

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