THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT

BY

BEATRIX POTTER

(abridged and simplified version)

FREDERICK WARNE

FREDERICK WARNE

First published 1902

Frederick Warne & Co., 1902
Printed and bound in Great Britain by William Clowes Limited, Beccles and
London
rabbit hole: Once upon a time there were four little
Kaninchenloch
Rabbits, and their names were Flopsy,
Mopsy, Cotton-tail, and Peter.

They lived with their mother in a rabbit

hole under a big fir tree.

'Now, my dears,' said old Mrs. Rabbit

lane: Weg
one morning, 'you can go into the fields
or down the lane, but don't go into Mr.
accident: Unfall McGregor's garden. Your father had an
accident there; Mrs. McGregor put him
pie: Pastete
in a pie.'

'Now run along, and don't get into

trouble. I am going out.'

Then old Mrs. Rabbit took a basket and

a basket: her umbrella, and went through the
the wood:
wood to the baker's. She bought some
bread.

TASK 1 True or wrong? Find the information in the text.

a. The little rabbits mustn’t play in the fields. d. Mr. McGregor is married.
b. They mustn’t go into Mr. McGregor’s garden. e. Peter’s mum goes shopping.
c. Peter’s dad is dead. f. She takes a bag with her.
to gather: sammeln Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail were
good little bunnies. They went down
the lane to gather blackberries.
a blackberry:

straight away: But Peter ran straight away to Mr.

geradewegs
McGregor's garden, and squeezed
to squeeze: sich under the gate!
quetschen

a gate:

First he ate some lettuce and some

lettuce: French beans; and then he ate some
radishes.

beans:

radishes:

Then he felt rather sick. He went to

parsley:
look for some parsley.

TASK 2 When do they think or say this? Match the sentences and the four pictures.
a. I want to see Mr. McGregor’s garden! c. These vegetables are delicious.
b. Let’s get some berries for dinner! d. I think I’ve eaten too much.
 But there he met Mr. McGregor!

to plant out: umpflanzen

Mr. McGregor was on his hands and
knees. He was planting out young
a cabbage:
cabbages, but he jumped up and ran
after Peter. He waved a rake and called
out, 'Stop, thief!’
a rake:

Peter was terribly frightened; he ran all

over the garden because he had
forgotten the way back to the gate.

He lost one of his shoes among the

cabbages, and the other shoe among the
potatoes.

Then he ran on four legs and went

gooseberries: faster. He might have got away if he
had not run into a gooseberry net, and
net: Netz got caught by the buttons on his jacket.
It was a blue jacket with brass buttons,
a button: quite new.
brass: Messing

TASK 3 Tick the correct answers; there may be more than one right answer.
a. Mr. McGregor is angry because …
1. he hates rabbits, 2. Peter is stealing his vegetables, 3. Peter has lost his shoes.
b. Peter tries to run away but …
1. Mr. McGregor catches him, 2. he is lost, 3. gets stuck in a net.
to implore: anflehen

sparrow: Spatz

to exert himself: sich

anstrengen Peter gave himself up for lost, and
cried; but some friendly sparrows heard
him. They flew to him, and implored
him to exert himself.

a sieve:

to wriggle out: sich

herauswinden
Mr. McGregor came up with a sieve.
He wanted to pop it upon the top of
Peter; but Peter wriggled out just in
time. He left his jacket behind him.

a tool shed:

… and rushed into the tool-shed, and

jumped into a can. The can was full of
water.

a flower pot: Mr. McGregor was sure that Peter was

somewhere in the tool-shed, perhaps
under a flower pot. He began to turn
them over, and looked under each.
to sneeze:

Presently Peter sneezed—'Kertyschoo!'

Mr. McGregor was after him in no
time.

TASK 4 Who says or thinks it – Peter, Mr. McGregor, or the sparrows?

a. You can get out! Try harder! c. Oh no, I’m caught!
b. Where are you? I’ll find you! d. This looks like a good place to hide!
 … and tried to put his foot upon Peter,
to upset (hier): umkippen who jumped out of a window, upsetting
three plants. The window was too small
to be tired of sth.: auf
etw. keine Lust mehr for Mr. McGregor, and he was tired of
haben running after Peter. He went back to
his work.

Peter sat down; he was out of breath

and frightened, and he didn’t know
out of breath: außer
Atem which way to go. And he was very wet
because he had sat in the can.
to wander about:
umherlaufen
After a time he began to wander about
and looked all round.

locked and open:

He found a door in a wall; but it was
locked.

An old mouse was running in and out

over the stone doorstep. She was
carrying peas and beans to her family.
peas: Peter asked her for the way to the gate,
but she had such a large pea in her
mouth that she could not answer. She
only shook her head. Peter began to
cry.

Then he tried to find his way straight

puzzled: verwirrt
across the garden, but he became more
and more puzzled. He came to a pond
where Mr. McGregor filled his water-
a pond: cans. A white cat was staring at some
gold-fish. She sat very, very still, but
tail: Schwanz
now and then the tip of her tail
to twitch: zucken twitched. Peter thought it best to go
away without speaking to her.
TASK 5 Fill in words from the text.
Peter runs away and ____________________ stops following him. But he has a problem:
He doesn’t know the ____________________. So he asks a ____________________, but
she doesn’t ____________________ his question. Next, he sees a white
____________________, but Peter doesn’t ____________________ to her.
 He went back towards the tool-shed,
a hoe: but suddenly he heard the noise of a
his back was turned
hoe—scr-r-ritch, scratch, scratch,
towards Peter: Er hatte scritch. Peter jumped underneath the
Peter den Rücken bushes. But as nothing happened, he
zugewandt
came out, and climbed upon a
wheelbarrow and looked around. The
first thing he saw was Mr. McGregor.
His back was turned towards Peter, and
behind him was the gate!

Peter got down very quietly off the

wheelbarrow and started running as
corner: Ecke fast as he could.
to slip: durchschlüpfen
Mr. McGregor was at the corner, but
Peter did not care. He slipped
underneath the gate, and was safe at
last in the wood outside the garden.

Mr. McGregor hung up the little jacket

and the shoes for a scare-crow to
frighten the blackbirds.

Peter never stopped running or looked

behind him till he got home.

TASK 6 What do you call these things? Find the right words in the text.

________________ ________________ ________________

 He was so tired that he fell down upon
a fortnight = two weeks
the nice soft sand on the floor of the
rabbit-hole and closed his eyes. His
mother was cooking. She wondered
what he had done with his clothes. It
was the second little jacket and pair of
shoes that Peter had lost in a fortnight!

chamomile: Peter was not very well during the

evening.

His mother put him to bed, and made

some chamomile tea; and she gave a
one table-spoonful: ein dose of it to Peter!
Teelöffel voll
'One table-spoonful to be taken at bed-
time.'

supper = dinner

But Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail had

bread and milk and blackberries for
supper.

TASK 8 True or wrong?

a) Peter’s mum is angry.
b) Peter doesn’t eat dinner.
c) Peter’s siblings drink tea for dinner.

.
TASK 9 Content. Underline the right words!

Peter is a little dog / boy / rabbit. One day his mother / father / sister goes out to
buy blueberries / bread / milk. She tells Peter and his friends / brothers and
sisters / cousins that they must not go down the lane / into Mr. McGregor’s
garden / into the fields. However, Peter doesn’t listen. He jumps over / squeezes
under / walks through the gate into the garden. There he sleeps / eats / plays a lot.
But then he sees Mr. McGregor / a cat / a tool shed. He is angry and tries to shoot /
kill / catch Peter. Peter runs away, but loses his shoes and his trousers / jacket / hat.
Then he hides in a watering can / flower pot / wheelbarrow. When Mr. McGregor
finds him there, he escapes through a small door / hole / window. After that, Mr.
McGregor goes back to work / into the tool shed / into the house. But Peter is very
happy / frightened / wet because he doesn’t know the way out of the garden. In the
end he sees the gate / the wood / the cat and runs for it. In the evening, Peter doesn’t
feel bad / good / tired.

TASK 10 Vocabulary: In the garden. Fill in the words from the box.
scarecrow – wheelbarrow – potatoes – peas – sparrow – mice – pond – blackberries –
chamomile – holes – tool shed

a) Mr McGregor makes a _______________________ with Peter’s jacket to frighten

the birds.
b) Chips are usually made from _______________________.
c) A _______________________ is a little bird.
d) You can keep fish in a _______________________.
e) _______________________ tea helps when you’re sick.
f) Rabbits live in _______________________ in the ground.
g) The hoes and the rakes are in the _______________________.
h) Cats like to hunt and eat _______________________.
i) _______________________ are small, round and green.
j) _______________________ are sweet and delicious.
k) If something is too heavy to carry, you can use a _______________________ to
transport it.
TASK 11 Grammar: The simple past / irregular verbs. Fill in the right verb in the
simple past!
find – fly – eat – lose – meet – sit – jump – run – make – want – hide

a) Peter _______wanted__________ to go into Mr. McGregor’s garden.

b) There he _______________________ lots of vegetables.
c) Then he _______________________ Mr. McGregor.
d) Peter _______________________ away from him.
e) While he was running, he _______________________ his shoes.
f) When he got caught in a net, a few birds _____________________ to him.
g) He _______________________ in a watering can.
h) But Mr. McGregor _______________________ him.
i) Peter _______________________ out of the window.
j) He saw a cat. The cat _______________________ by the pond.
j) In the evening, his mother _______________________ him some chamomile tea.

TASK 12 Grammar: The negation of the simple past. These sentences are wrong.
Negate them using didn’t + infinitive. Then correct them using the phrases from the
box. Use the simple past!

go down the lane – have milk, bread and blackberries – buy bread – go back to work
– eat lettuce and radishes

a) Flopsy, Mopsy and Cotton-tail went into Mr. McGregor’s garden. -

No, they __didn’t go__ into Mr. McGregor’s garden. They __went down the lane__.
b) Mr. McGregor caught Peter. – No, he _______________________ Peter. He
__________________________________________________________________.
c) Peter ate lots of apples. – No, he _______________________ any apples. He
__________________________________________________________________.
d) Mrs. Rabbit bought some sugar. – No, she _______________________ any sugar.
She _______________________________________________________________.
e) Flopsy, Mopsy and Cotton-tail drank coffee for dinner. – No, they
_______________________ coffee. They _________________________________
___________________________________________________________________.
TASK 13 Grammar: Fill in the verbs in the simple past (I walked) and the past
progressive (I was walking).
REMEMBER:
Das simple past bildet man mit –ed oder der 3. Spalte der unregelmäßigen Verben. Man
verwendet es für kurze, plötzliche Handlungen.
Das past progressive bildet man mit was / were + ing-Form. Man verwendet es für länger
andauernde Handlungen, die sich noch im Verlauf befinden.

The students were working on their projects when the teacher came back.
Andauernde Handlung………………….wird von kurzer, plötzlich einsetzender unterbrochen.

While Bob and Kate were reading, I was watching TV.

Zwei längere Handlungen laufen parallel ab.

a) Mr. McGregor _______________________ (plant) cabbages when he suddenly

_______________________ (see) a rabbit.
b) Peter’s mother _______________________ (cook) when Peter
_______________________ (come) home.
c) While Peter _______________________ (steal) food from Mr. McGregor’s
garden, his brothers and sisters _______________________ (gather) blueberries.
d) Peter _______________________ (walk) past a cat that
_______________________ (stare) at some goldfish in the pond.
e) Peter _______________________ (run) past Mr. McGregor while the old man
_______________________ (work) in the garden.

TASK 14 Writing. The next day, Peter’s cousin Benjamin comes to visit. Benjamin
wants to go back into Mr. McGregor’s garden to fetch Peter’s jacket and shoes. Write
down what happens to the two rabbits.
 Lösungen:

TASK 1 True or wrong? Find the information in the text.

a. The little rabbits mustn’t play in the fields. – W d. Mr. McGregor is married. – T
b. They mustn’t go into Mr. McGregor’s garden. – T e. Peter’s mum goes shopping. – T
c. Peter’s dad is dead. – T f. She takes a bag with her. – W

TASK 2 When do they think or say this? Match the sentences and the four pictures.
a. I want to see Mr. McGregor’s garden! – 2 c. These vegetables are delicious. – 3
b. Let’s get some berries for dinner! – 1 d. I think I’ve eaten too much. – 4

TASK 3 Tick the correct answers; there may be more than one right answer.
a. Mr. McGregor is angry because …
1. he hates rabbits, 2. Peter is stealing his vegetables, 3. Peter has lost his shoes.
b. Peter tries to run away but …
1. Mr. McGregor catches him, 2. he is lost, 3. gets stuck in a net.

TASK 4 Who says or thinks it – Peter, Mr. McGregor, or the sparrows?

a. You can get out! Try harder! c. Oh no, I’m caught!
b. Where are you? I’ll find you! d. This looks like a good place to hide!

TASK 5 Fill in words from the text.

Peter runs away and Mr. McGregor stops following him. But he has a problem: He doesn’t know the
way. So he asks a mouse, but she doesn’t answer his question. Next, he sees a white cat, but Peter doesn’t
speak to her.

TASK 6 What do you call these things? Find the right words in the text.

scarecrow wheelbarrow blackbird

TASK 8 True or wrong?

a) Peter’s mum is angry. – wrong
b) Peter doesn’t eat dinner. – true
c) Peter’s siblings drink tea for dinner. – wrong

TASK 9 Circle the right words!

Peter is a little dog / boy / rabbit. One day his mother / father / sister goes out to buy blueberries
/ bread / milk. She tells Peter and his friends / brothers and sisters / cousins that they must not
go down the lane / into Mr. McGregor’s garden / into the fields. However, Peter doesn’t listen.
He jumps over / squeezes under / walks through the gate into the garden. There he sleeps / eats /
plays a lot. But then he sees Mr. McGregor / a cat / a tool shed. He is angry and tries to shoot /
kill / catch Peter. Peter runs away, but loses his shoes and his trousers / jacket / hat. Then he hides
in a watering can / flower pot / wheelbarrow. When Mr. McGregor finds him there, he escapes
through a small door / hole / window. After that, Mr. McGregor goes back to work / into the tool
shed / into the house. But Peter is very happy / frightened / wet because he doesn’t know the way
out of the garden. In the end he sees the gate / the wood / the cat and runs for it. In the evening,
Peter doesn’t feel bad / good / tired.

TASK 10
a) Mr McGregor makes a scarecrow (Vogelscheuche) with Peter’s jacket to frighten the birds.
b) Chips are usually made from potatoes (Kartoffeln).
c) A sparrow (Spatz) is a little bird.
d) You can keep fish in a pond. (Teich)
e) Chamomile (Kamille) tea helps when you’re sick.
f) Rabbits live in holes (Löcher) in the ground.
g) The hoes and the rakes are in the tool shed. (Werkzeugschuppen)
h) Cats like to hunt and eat mice. (Mäuse)
i) Peas (Erbsen) are small, round and green.
j) Blackberries (Brombeeren) are sweet and delicious.
k) If something is too heavy to carry, you can use a wheelbarrow (Schubkarre) to transport it.

TASK 11 Grammar: The simple past / irregular verbs. Fill in the right verb in the simple past!
find – fly – eat – lose – meet – sit – jump – run – make – want – hide

a) Peter _______wanted__________ to go into Mr. McGregor’s garden.

b) There he ate lots of vegetables.
c) Then he met Mr. McGregor.
d) Peter ran away from him.
e) While he was running, he lost his shoes.
f) When he got caught in a net, a few birds flew to him.
g) He hid in a watering can.
h) But Mr. McGregor found him.
i) Peter jumped out of the window.
j) He saw a cat. The cat sat by the pond.
j) In the evening, his mother made him some chamomile tea.

TASK 12 Grammar: The negation of the simple past. These sentences are wrong. Negate them
using didn’t + infinitive. Then correct them using the phrases from the box. Use the simple past!

go down the lane – go back to work – eat lettuce and radishes – buy bread – have milk, bread and
blackberries

a) Flopsy, Mopsy and Cotton-tail went into Mr. McGregor’s garden. -

No, they __didn’t go__ into Mr. McGregor’s garden. They __went down the lane__.
b) Mr. McGregor caught Peter. – No, he didn’t catch Peter. He went back to work.
c) Peter ate lots of apples. – No, he didn’t eat any apples. He ate lettuce and radishes.
d) Mrs. Rabbit bought some sugar. – No, she didn’t buy any sugar. She bought some bread.
e) Flopsy, Mopsy and Cotton-tail drank coffee for dinner. – No, they didn’t drink coffee. They
had milk, bread and blackberries.

TASK 13 Grammar: Fill in the verbs in the simple past (I walked) and the past progressive (I was
walking).
a) Mr. McGregor was planting cabbages when he saw Peter.
b) Peter’s mother was cooking when Peter came home.
c) While Peter was stealing food from Mr. McGregor’s garden, his brothers and sisters were
gathering blueberries.
d) Peter walked past a cat that was staring at some goldfish in the pond.
e) Peter ran past Mr. McGregor while he was working in the garden.