IT soon became clear that Cloudcuckooland was attracting the wrong sort.
The same bickering lawyers, meddlesome town-planners, poets looking for a job, and empty-headed celebrities that had plagued Athens all came calling, and were hastily turned away.
At last, a three-man delegation came from Olympus: Poseidon, Heracles, and an obscure and rather stupid god named Triballus, complaining that no one offered them sacrifice anymore.
Pisthetaerus promised that the birds would encourage men to respect the Olympians, if he were recognised as king of the birds, and given the sceptre of Zeus, and the goddess Sovereignty as his wife.
Poseidon was appalled, and refused point-blank. But Heracles thought it sounded reasonable and the slow-witted Triballus just did what Heracles told him to do.
And so it was that the birds crowned Pisthetaerus king and chief god of Cloudcuckooland, and married him off to the lovely goddess Sovereignty, who presented him with the sceptre of Zeus.
Précis
At first, far from helping Pisthetaerus to escape Athens, the success of Cloudcuckooland brought Athens to his door. Soon, however, he won a famous victory against the Olympian gods, persuading a delegation from the Mountain to grant him the goddess Sovereignty as his wife, and to put Zeus’s own sceptre in his hand. (53 / 60 words)
At first, far from helping Pisthetaerus to escape Athens, the success of Cloudcuckooland brought Athens to his door. Soon, however, he won a famous victory against the Olympian gods, persuading a delegation from the Mountain to grant him the goddess Sovereignty as his wife, and to put Zeus’s own sceptre in his hand.
Variations: 1.increase the length of this precis to exactly 60 words. 2.reduce the length of this precis to exactly 50 words. 3.introduce one of the following words into the precis: about, although, despite, if, just, not, or, ought.
Archive
Word Games
Sevens Based on this passage
Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.
Variations: 1.expand your answer to exactly fourteen words. 2.expand your answer further, to exactly twenty-one words. 3.include one of the following words in your answer: if, but, despite, because, (al)though, unless.
Jigsaws Based on this passage
Express the ideas below in a single sentence, using different words as much as possible. Do not be satisfied with the first answer you think of; think of several, and choose the best.
Spinners Find in Think and Speak
For each group of words, compose a sentence that uses all three. You can use any form of the word: for example, cat → cats, go → went, or quick → quickly, though neigh → neighbour is stretching it a bit.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1 Marry. Scepter. So.
2 Moreover. Rumor. Scruffy.
3 Lovely. Pretty. Spread.
Variations: 1. include direct and indirect speech 2. include one or more of these words: although, because, despite, either/or, if, unless, until, when, whether, which, who 3. use negatives (not, isn’t, neither/nor, never, nobody etc.)
High Tiles Find in Think and Speak
Make words (three letters or more) from the seven letters showing below, using any letter once only. Each letter carries a score. What is the highest-scoring word you can make?
Your Words ()
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