Story Voice

The Emperor's New Clothes Story

The Emperor's New Clothes is a classic story from Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales, for children aged 4–8. This page has the English story with a native English narration (about 3 min), plus the Chinese version with Mandarin narration (about 6 min). Free to read and listen, no sign-up.

In Andersen's tale, two tricksters sell an emperor cloth that fools can't see, and only a child dares to say he has nothing on. With native English narration, plus the Chinese version in Mandarin.

0:002:26

Tap any sentence in the story to start reading from there. It stops at the end.

Record about a minute of your voice, and every story here can be read to your child in it. Credits come back automatically if it fails.

Read The Emperor's New Clothes

Long ago, there was an emperor who loved new clothes. He loved them more than anything. He put on a new coat almost every hour.

One day, two bad men came to the city. They liked to trick people. "We can make the most beautiful cloth in the world," they said. "And it is magic! Stupid people cannot see it. People who are bad at their jobs cannot see it."

"Wonderful!" thought the emperor. "With clothes like that, I can find out who is clever and who is stupid." He gave the men lots of gold.

The two men sat at their looms all day. They asked for fine silk and gold thread, but they kept it all for themselves. There was nothing on the looms at all.

The emperor sent his old minister to look. The minister looked and looked. He saw nothing! "Oh no," he thought. "Am I stupid? Nobody must know!" So he said, "How beautiful! What lovely colors!"

Then the emperor went to see the cloth himself. He saw nothing too. "Am I stupid?" he thought. "Am I not good enough to be emperor?" So he said, "Very nice! I like it very much!"

The two men cut the air with big scissors. They sewed with no thread in their needles. "The clothes are ready!" they said. "They are as light as air." The emperor took off his clothes, and they dressed him in nothing at all. He turned this way and that way in front of the mirror.

Then the emperor walked through the streets. Everyone saw that he had nothing on. But nobody wanted to look stupid. "What beautiful new clothes!" they all said.

Then a little child called out, "But the emperor has nothing on!"

"Listen to the child," said the father. People began to whisper. Soon everyone was shouting, "He has nothing on!"

The emperor shivered. He knew they were right. But he held his head up high and walked on. Behind him, two men still held up the long end of his new coat. But there was nothing in their hands at all.

The Chinese version: 皇帝的新装

很多年以前，有一位皇帝，他最喜欢的就是新衣服。他不爱管国家大事，也不爱出门游玩，只要能穿上新衣服让大家看，他就高兴。他差不多每个钟头都要换一身衣服。大臣们来找他，侍从常常说：“请等一等，皇帝还在试衣服呢。”

有一天，城里来了两个骗子。他们说自己是织布的能手，能织出世界上最美的布。“我们织的布，花样好看，颜色漂亮。”他们说，“更神奇的是，当不好官的人，还有笨得不得了的人，都看不见这种布。”

皇帝一听，心想：“这下可好了！我穿上它，一眼就能分出谁是能干的大臣，谁是糊涂虫。”他马上给了两个骗子一大笔钱，让他们赶快织。

两个骗子在屋里支起织布机，梭子甩来甩去，踏板咯吱咯吱地响，看上去忙得很。他们一会儿要金线，一会儿要丝线，要来的东西全藏进了自己的箱子。其实呢，织布机上连一根线也没有。

过了些日子，皇帝想知道布织得怎么样了。可他心里有点儿发慌：万一自己看不见呢？他决定先派一位诚实的老大臣去看看。

老大臣走进屋子，睁大眼睛一看——织布机上空空的！他心里咯噔一下：“糟了！我怎么什么也看不见？要是让人知道了，大家会说我又笨又不会当官……不行，绝对不能说！”骗子们指着织布机问：“您看，这花样怎么样？这颜色怎么样？”老大臣赶紧点头：“好看，好看，真是太好看了！我一定告诉皇帝。”

后来，皇帝又派了一位官员去。这位官员也什么都没看见，可他也说：“这布真是漂亮极了！”

最后，皇帝带着一大群大臣，亲自去看。织布机上还是空空的。皇帝心里直打鼓：“怎么回事？我什么也看不见！难道我连皇帝都当不好？”可是大臣们都在拍手叫好，他只好挤出笑容：“嗯，不错，非常不错！”大臣们说：“陛下，用这块布做一身新衣服，穿着去参加游行吧！”

游行的前一天晚上，两个骗子点着蜡烛，忙了一整夜。他们假装把布从织布机上取下来，拿着大剪刀在半空中咔嚓咔嚓地剪，又捏着一根没有线的针，飞快地缝来缝去。天亮了，他们捧着空空的双手说：“新衣服做好啦！它轻得像一缕风，穿在身上一点儿分量也没有。”

皇帝脱下衣服，站在大镜子前。骗子们装模作样地给他一件一件“穿”上新衣服。皇帝转过来，转过去。大臣们齐声说：“多合身啊！多好看啊！”两个侍从弯下腰，假装托起长长的后襟，跟在皇帝后面。游行开始了。

街道两边挤满了人。大家明明看见皇帝身上什么也没有，可是谁也不愿说自己看不见，于是你一句，我一句：“皇帝的新衣服真漂亮！”“瞧那后襟，多长啊！”

就在这时，一个小孩子扯了扯爸爸的袖子，大声说：“皇帝没穿衣服呀！”爸爸愣了一下：“孩子说的是实话啊。”这句话一个传一个，越传越响。最后，整条街的人都喊起来：“皇帝真的什么也没穿！”

皇帝浑身一凉，心里也明白了七八分。可是游行才走了一半，他不肯停下来，只好把头抬得更高，继续往前走。后面的侍从们还是弯着腰，捧着那条谁也看不见的后襟——因为它本来就不存在。

The Emperor's New Clothes Story: the moral of the story

Have the courage to tell the truth, even when everyone else is pretending. And be wary of people who only tell you what you want to hear.

Chinese words in The Emperor's New Clothes

Play the Chinese narration and listen for these words. The pinyin shows the tones.

  • 皇帝huáng dì

    emperor

  • 新衣服xīn yī fu

    new clothes

  • 骗子piàn zi

    swindler, cheat

  • 大臣dà chén

    minister (of the court)

  • 织布机zhī bù jī

    loom

  • 游行yóu xíng

    parade

  • 小孩子xiǎo hái zi

    little child

  • 实话shí huà

    the truth

Bedtime storytelling tips

  • Read what the old minister and the emperor are thinking in a whisper. Children find it tense and funny at once.
  • Pause just before the child in the crowd speaks, and let your child call out, "But the emperor has nothing on!"
  • Afterward, play pretend: put on an invisible coat, turn around and ask how you look, and let your child tell you the truth.

Things to talk about afterwards

  • The minister saw nothing. Why did he say the cloth was beautiful?
  • Why do you think a child was the first to tell the truth?
  • If everyone said something was right and you knew it was wrong, what would you do?

Read this story to your child in your own voice

  1. Record your voice and confirm it's really you
  2. Pick any story, in English or Chinese
  3. A few minutes later, hear it in your voice; you can also download the MP3

From about $1.05 a story, or $1.99 for a first-order taster. Reading and listening are always free, and failed generations are refunded.

Read it in my voiceSee pricing

The Emperor's New Clothes Story: common questions

What is the moral of The Emperor's New Clothes?
Have the courage to say what is true, even when everyone around you is pretending, and don't go along just because you are afraid of looking stupid. The story also pokes fun at vanity and at people who only want to hear praise.
Who wrote The Emperor's New Clothes?
The Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875). It was first published in 1837, in the same small book as The Little Mermaid. Andersen said he took the idea from a story by the medieval Spanish writer Juan Manuel.
Who tells the truth in The Emperor's New Clothes?
A little child in the crowd calls out, "But the emperor has nothing on!" His father says, "Listen to the child," people start to whisper, and soon everyone is shouting, "He has nothing on!"
How does The Emperor's New Clothes end?
The emperor shivers and knows the people are right, but he holds his head up high and walks on. Behind him, two men keep holding up the long end of a coat that isn't there.

Source and how we retold it

By the Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen, Keiserens nye Klæder, first published in 1837 and now in the public domain. Andersen said the story came from a tale by the medieval Spanish writer Juan Manuel. Our retelling follows Andersen's plot and does not use any existing Chinese translation. The plot and ending match the original; the second official's visit to the looms and some details before the parade are told more briefly, and the English text leaves the second official out.

The narration on this page is AI-generated: the English is read by 英伦绅士 and the Chinese by 温柔妈妈. The audio files are labeled as AI-generated.

If you liked The Emperor's New Clothes Story, there are more stories in Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales. You can also read this one to your child in your own voice.

More Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales