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La Tortuga y la Liebre

Read The Tortoise and the Hare in Spanish — an Aesop fable about perseverance and humility. Follow along with audio narration and a full English translation in every paragraph.

🇪🇸 Spanish 📚 Short Story 🎧 Audio Narration 🌎 Bilingual 🧭 Aesop's Fables
Also available in: French, Portuguese, Italian, German, Russian, Swedish
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Audio
Narrador Español — Spanish Narrator

Use the buttons below to listen to the full story read aloud in Spanish. Hover over underlined words to see their definitions.

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Parte 1 — La burla

Una liebrehare — a fast wild rabbit-like animal se burlabawas mocking / making fun of de la tortugatortoise / turtle un día por ser tan lentaslow (feminine).

A Hare was making fun of the Tortoise one day for being so slow.

“¿Alguna vez llegasyou arrive / you get (to a place) a alguna parte?” preguntóhe asked / he questioned con una risa burlonamocking laugh / sarcastic laugh.

“Do you ever get anywhere?” he asked with a mocking laugh.
La tortuga y la liebre
Parte 2 — El desafío

“Sí”, respondióreplied / answered la Tortuga, “y llego allí antes de lo que piensasyou think. Te haréI will make / I will run (a race) una carrerarace y te lo demostraréI will prove / I will show you”.

“Yes,” replied the Tortoise, “and I get there sooner than you think. I’ll run you a race and prove it.”

A la Liebre le divirtióamused / entertained mucho la idea de correr una carrera con la Tortuga, pero por el gusto de hacerlofor the fun of it, estuvo de acuerdoagreed / was in agreement.

The Hare was much amused at the idea of running a race with the Tortoise, but for the fun of the thing he agreed.
Parte 3 — La carrera comienza

Entonces el ZorroFox — the clever forest animal, que había accedidoagreed / consented a actuar como juezjudge / referee, marcó la distanciamarked the distance / measured the course y puso en marchaset off / started (the runners) a los corredores.

So the Fox, who had consented to act as judge, marked the distance and started the runners off.

La Liebre pronto se perdió de vistadisappeared from sight / was out of sight, y para que la Tortuga sintiera profundamentefelt deeply / truly felt lo ridículo que era para ella intentar una carrera con una Liebre, la Liebre se acostólay down al lado del camino.

The Hare was soon far out of sight, and to make the Tortoise feel very deeply how ridiculous it was for her to try a race with a Hare, the Hare lay down beside the course.
Parte 4 — La siesta

La Liebre decidió tomar una siestanap — a short sleep, especially in the afternoon hasta que la Tortuga lo alcanzaracaught up / reached him. “¿Qué prisahurry / rush hay?”, pensó la Liebre. “Tengo tiempo de sobra para ganarwin.”

The Hare decided to take a nap until the Tortoise should catch up. “What’s the hurry?” thought the Hare. “I have plenty of time to win.”

Pronto, la Liebre se quedó dormidafell asleep muy tranquilamentepeacefully / calmly, roncandosnoring bajo el cálido sol de la tarde.

Soon the Hare fell peacefully asleep, snoring under the warm afternoon sun.
Parte 5 — ¡La Tortuga no se rinde!

Mientras tanto, la Tortuga siguió avanzando lenta pero constantementeslowly but steadily — the key phrase of the story!. Un paso tras otro, sin descansarresting / pausing, sin rendirsegiving up.

The Tortoise meanwhile kept going slowly but steadily. One step after another, without resting, without giving up.

Después de un tiempo, la Tortuga pasó por el lugar donde dormía la Liebre. Pero la Liebre siguió durmiendo muy apaciblementepeacefully / serenely.

After a time, the Tortoise passed the place where the Hare was sleeping. But the Hare slept on very peacefully.
Parte 6 — Demasiado tarde

Cuando por fin despertówoke up, la Tortuga estaba cerca de la metafinish line / goal. La Liebre ahora corrió lo más rápido posible, pero no pudo alcanzarcatch up with / overtake a la Tortuga a tiempoin time / on time.

And when at last the Hare did wake up, the Tortoise was near the goal. The Hare now ran his swiftest, but he could not overtake the Tortoise in time.

La Tortuga cruzó la metacrossed the finish line primero, entre los aplausosto the applause / amid the clapping de todos los animales del bosque. ¡La Liebre había perdido!

The Tortoise crossed the finish line first, to the applause of all the forest animals. The Hare had lost!
La Moraleja — The Moral
“Lento y constante gana la carrera.”
“Slow and steady wins the race.”