READ OUT LOUD. Choose which marked text you prefer to practice with - macrons in verse form, or macrons in prose order, or accent marks in prose order, or focusing on the iambic meter. You will find materials for all of these options below. :-)
VERSE MACRONS. Here is the verse text with macrons:
Valdē loquācem cum Rānam audisset Leo,
Timuit, et aliquod esse magnum animal putāns,
Rētrō sē vertit: at mox ē stagnō videt
Rānam exeuntem, quam indignāns calcat pede.
Iniicere falsōs fortibus animīs metūs
Perīculōsum quam sit, exemplum hoc probat.
PROSE MACRONS. Here is the same text with macrons written out in prose word order:
Leo, cum Rānam audisset valdē loquācem, timuit, et, putāns animal aliquod magnum esse, rētrō sē vertit: at mox ē stagnō videt Rānam exeuntem, quam pede calcat, indignāns. Exemplum hoc probat quam perīculōsum sit animīs fortibus iniicere metūs falsōs.
STRESS (ACCENT) MARKS. Here is the prose text with accents, plus some color-coding for the words of three or more syllables (blue: penultimate stress; red: antepenultimate stress):
Leo, cum Ranam audísset valde loquácem, tímuit, et, putans ánimal áliquod magnum esse, retro se vertit: at mox e stagno videt Ranam exeúntem, quam pede calcat, indígnans. Exémplum hoc probat quam periculósum sit ánimis fórtibus iniícere metus falsos.
IAMBIC METER. Here is the verse text with some color coding to assist in the iambic meter. The disyllabic elements (iambs/spondees) are not marked, but the trisyllabic elements are color-coded: dactyls are red, anapests are purple, and tribrachs are green (as is any proceleusmaticus, although that is a rare creature); for more information, here are some Notes on Iambic Meter.
Valdē· loquā·cem cum· Rān~ au·disset· Leo,
Timuit,· et ali·quod es·se mag·n~ animal· putāns,
Rētrō· sē ver·tit: at· mox ē· stagnō· videt
Rān~ ex·eun·tem, qu~in·dignāns· calcat· pede.
Iniice·re fal·sōs for·tibus an·imīs· metūs
Perī·culō·sum quam· sit, ex·empl~ hoc· probat.
Here is an illustration from the Medici Aesop, which is online at the New York Public Library website.
What follows is an unmarked version of the prose rendering to faciliate word searches:
Leo, cum Ranam audisset valde loquacem, timuit, et, putans animal aliquod magnum esse, retro se vertit: at mox e stagno videt Ranam exeuntem, quam pede calcat, indignans. Exemplum hoc probat quam periculosum sit animis fortibus iniicere metus falsos.
