137 motifs match “finds” — showing the first 100; narrow the words for the rest  ·  back to the chapters

• First man created from nothing wanders until he finds mate. A1275.7
• Origin of menstruation – Virgin Mary's garment. She hides her garment and a maiden finds it. A1355.2
• Shrew blows nose into snout. Sent after fire, he finds but a little which he tries to revive by hard blowing. A2211.5
• Animal characteristics: punishment for immoderate request. Dissatisfied animal finds that when his request is granted he is worse off than before. A2232
• Horse allowed to go as it pleases, finds unknown person. B151.1.1.0.3
• Mare with foal left behind finds road home. The foal is left so that the force of nature in the mare will discover the unknown road home. B151.1.1.1
• Animals grateful for being given appropriate food. Hero finds dog with hay and horse with meat. He changes it about. B392.1
• Animal finds stolen person. B543
• Bottlefly finds stolen woman in sky. B543.1
• Animal finds stolen goods. B543.2
• Boy who plays marriage-game finds he has actually been married to a spirit (invisible during ceremony). C167.1
• Tabu: looking into jug. Woman does so and finds mouse in it. C324
• Swan Maiden finds her hidden wings and resumes her form. D361.1.1
• Golden staff stuck into ground finds site for city. D1314.2.6
• King who finds golden bow and arrow (spindle) knows an heir will be born to him. D1812.5.2.9
• The Vanishing Hitchhiker. Ghost of young woman asks for ride in automobile, disappears from closed car without the driver's knowledge, after giving him address to which she wishes to be taken. Driver asks person at address about the rider, finds she has been dead for some time. (Often driver finds that ghost has made similar attempts to return, usually on anniversary of death in automobile accident. Often ghost leaves some item such as a scarf or a traveling bag in car.) E332.3.3.1
• Ghost finds rest when certain thing happens. E451
• Swineherd finds terrestrial paradise while looking for lost sow. F111.0.2
• Fairy comes into man's power when he steals her wings (clothes). She leaves when she finds them. F302.4.2
• Fairy comes into man's power when he steals her clothes. She leaves when she finds them. F302.4.2.1
• Tabu: drinking from certain well in fairyland. Person does, finds himself alone on hillside. (Cf. C260.) F378.4
• Saint visits king of fairies on invitation of fairy king. Saint sprinkles holy water on fairy king, finds himself alone on hill. F379.4
• The purchased cobold discarded. On way home man believes himself cheated, and throws box with fly or piece of charcoal away. Later passing same place he finds a heap of corn or money. F481.0.1.2.1
• Giant comes to bake too soon; spills dough. Giant who has common oven with another thinks he hears companion in next valley scraping the kneading trough. He bakes his dough but finds he is too early and that he has only heard himself scratching. He spills the dough: hence fruitful soil. (Cf. F451.7.2, F455.3.5.) F531.3.7
• Person of remarkable sight finds tracks of swine stolen seven years before his birth. F642.2
• Unwitting cannibalism: scavenger in wedding feast finds basket of noses put there by hero and thinks it full of meat. G63
• God finds the devil sitting under a tree which was made by his throwing his staff into the water. G303.1.2.1
• God finds the devil under a stone. G303.1.2.2
• Devil has shining teeth. Girl wishes to marry man whose teeth shine. Such a man appears and they marry. When he removes his hat she finds he is the devil. G303.4.1.5.1
• King finds note with children in casket floated down river identifying them as his. (Cf. S141.) H157
• Who will find the most marvelous thing? Each finds some marvelous thing. It turns out, that to save the girl's life all the things must be used together. H355.0.1
• Bride test: key in flax reveals laziness. Suitor hides key in flax on spinning wheel. Finds it there next day. H382.1
• Baby finds its mother, goes to her for suckling. H495.1
• Found mortar taken to king reveals peasant girl's wisdom. Peasant finds mortar in his field and against his daughter's advice takes it to the king, who demands the pestle as well. Peasant laments that he has not followed daughter's advice. King summons her. H561.1.2
• Maiden (to king): The house has neither eyes nor ears. (No child at window nor dog in yard to announce king's approach: he therefore finds her not dressed to receive him.) H583.8
• Task: selling three old women. (Devil finds that no one wants them.) H1153
• Queen writes message on stone which hero finds: he goes in search of her. H1229.2
• Quest for the anger of God. Man is so fortunate that people say that he has everything but the anger of God. He seeks it and finds it with much misfortune. H1376.3.1
• Test of curiosity: mouse in jug. The new Eve. A woman has boasted of a lack of curiosity and blamed Mother Eve. The king entertains her in his castle. She may see everything but must not look into a certain silver jug. She does so and finds a mouse in it. (Cf. H1557.2.) H1554.1
• "Do not act when angry": counsel proved wise by experience. Man returns home and sees someone sleeping with his wife. Though he thinks it is a paramour, he restrains himself and finds that it is a newborn son. J21.2
• "Go to Goosebridge": counsel proved wise by experience. Man with disobedient wife finds mules beaten there and made to cross bridge. J21.16
• "Ruler should follow advice of majority" (not his own fancy): counsel proved wise by experience. Thus finds money on body of dead traveler. J21.35
• Disciple who stays in a city where everything is sold at one price finds justice is not even there. (Cf. F769.1.) J21.52.1
• Father bequeathes four pots to sons: eldest finds earth in his; second, bones; third, rice husks; youngest, rupees (eldest to get land; second, cattle; third, grain; youngest to keep money). J99.2
• Wisdom from books bought at great price. (Sibylline). Nine books first offered at certain price. Finally after this is refused and the owner throws six of them into the fire, the king pays the same price for three of them. Finds them filled with wisdom. J166.1
• Monk goes to wilderness to escape work on material things. Finds that he must work to live and returns to monastery. J215.4
• Peasant leaves honey tree standing. Sparrows and crickets ask peasant to leave tree standing. He refuses, but when he finds honey in the tree he consents. J241.2
• Barber leaves inexpensive village for high wages in city. Finds cost of living more than enough to take all his profit. J342.1
• Wolf does not mind the dust. Told that dust from flock of sheep will annoy him; he finds it useful. J352.1
• The widow's meal. King upbraids wind for blowing away a poor widow's last cup of meal. Finds that the wind has saved a ship full of people by that very act. The king is humbled. J355.1
• Wolf tries to eat bowstring. Finds hunter, gazelle, and wild boar dead. Tries first to eat the bowstring, and is mortally wounded. J514.2
• Greedy man dissatisfied with gold looks for jewels; finds only iron and eventually nothing. J514.5
• Paramour who insists on quarreling with mistress about escape caught by her husband. He finds the escape different from that which had been described to him. J581.2
• Truth the best policy. Servant about to be caught for theft rehearses the lie he is to tell his master. He finds lies so transparent that he decides to tell the truth. J751.1
• The only person in the bath. Servant reports to master that there is but one person in the public bath Master finds three hundred. Only one person had removed stone from his path; rest had stubbed toes. He was only one worthy of the name of man. J753.1
• Child finds gray hair in wicked father's head. Father sees that it is time for him to reform. J761.1
• Lion comforted for his fear of the cock. Finds that elephant is afraid of the gnat. J881.2
• Baldheaded man finds the comb: it is useless. J1061.2
• Foolish dog finds treasure and dies rather than leave it. J1061.3
• Magistrate finds thieving innkeepers guilty of arson. Silver buckles are not melted by the fire. J1149.9
• Enoch Arden decision. Man believing wife dead becomes a priest. Later finds her alive. Pope's decision: he may remain both a priest and husband but must not consort with any other woman. J1179.10
• Judge finds offense is not great when it is his own son who is guilty. [Inadvertant duplication of U21.5.] J1197
• Skeleton has all his ribs. Indian examines skeleton of man at museum, finds there is no rib missing, concludes that ministers have deceived him in telling him the story of Adam. J1262.8
• Even God can overdo it! Returning sailor finds his hovel transformed into a fine house. "Where does all this come from?" Wife: "God's bounty." Illegitimate child greets mother. Same question, same answer. Sailor: "I don't want God to help me so much!" J1279.2
• Owner laughs at thief who finds nothing in house. J1392.4
• The greedy dreamer. He dreams that he receives nine coins. He demands ten. He wakes and finds that he has dreamed. He is willing to accept the nine. J1473
• The stolen meat and the weighed cat. A man buys three pounds of meat. His wife eats it and says that the cat ate it. The man weighs the cat and finds that it does not weigh three pounds. J1611
• Extravagant woman whose husband continually finds fault with her. J1701.1
• Fool is unacquainted with bananas, throws away the fruit, finds the rest bitter. (Similar for watermelon, plums.) J1732.2
• Boy thinks terrapin hatches from bedbug eggs. Small boy examines bedbug eggs under pillow every morning. One morning he finds a terrapin there. "I don't see how we raised this so quick." J1772.1.1
• Daughter says "Sobur" (wait) to her father when he asks what to bring from the journey. Father finds Prince Sobur. J1805.2.1
• Numskull sells cow to bird. When he comes for his money the bird flies to a trash pile, where the fool finds a treasure. (Cf. J1853.1.1.) J1852.1
• Fool sells balls of thread to great lizard. Next day he finds a treasure there. J1852.1.1
• Money from the broken statue. Fool sells goods to a statue and when it will not pay him knocks it to pieces. He finds a treasure inside. (Cf. J1852.1.) J1853.1.1
• Spinning wheel is sent home by itself. The man asks his wife if it has arrived before him, finds that it has not. "I thought not. I came a shorter way." J1881.1.5
• Numskull doesn't recognize his own horse. Finds it only when the rest ride away and he takes the only one left. J2023
• The trusted porters. A man finds a treasure, but is robbed by porters whom he has employed to rid him of the trouble of carrying it. J2092
• Thieving numskull beats drum (blows trumpet, etc.) he finds in outhouse. Caught. J2136.5.7
• Crocodile goes after the second child. He finds two children bathing in the river and carries one to his hole. He tells the child to wait while he goes for the other child. Both children escape. J2173.6
• Raven steals the robes of Red Willow Men and finds them useless. J2194
• Numskull finds that one feather makes a hard pillow, thinks a sackful would be unbearable. J2213.9
• Man honored above God: the dead hen. A fool finds a dead hen and cooks it and serves it for dinner. When reproached he says "How should it be unclean when God has killed it instead of men?" J2215.3
• Servant sent to doctor finds trip futile. Doctor may not be in and, if he is there, he may not give the medicine. He may give the medicine but it may not have any effect; or, if it does have any, he has to die someday anyway and the medicine will not prevent him from dying. J2241.2
• Husband praises wife's fidelity. Rascal tests it and finds it lacking. J2342.4
• The literal host: bread and salt. Guest finds that his host spoke literally when he invited him to share his bread and salt. Later, when the host threatens an importunate beggar, the guest advises the beggar to flee since the host means what he says. J2476
• Sent back for the rest of the money. A fool finds a treasure and takes some of it to a judge so as to purchase influence. The judge sends him back for the rest. J2662
• The horse swifter than the rain. Caught in the rain, a trickster finds that his horse will not budge. He undresses, puts his clothes under the horse's belly and keeps them dry. When he reaches the king, he reports that his horse has run so fast that he has had no time to get wet. The king buys the horse. K134.2
• Cheater is forced to eat excrements. Gentleman agrees to exchange his good horse for the peasant's jade, provided the peasant will eat its excrements. The peasant finds no difficulty in the task, whereas the gentleman, put to the same condition when he wants to get back his horse, finds it impossible. K198
• Payment of the egg-white. A man dreams of an egg hanging under his bed. An interpreter demands half of what he finds as his fee for interpreting the dream. The man finds that the egg is a silver cup filled with gold crowns. He gives the interpreter part of the cup but none of the gold. The interpreter says, "He gave me some of the egg-white but none of the yolk." K249.2
• Thief sent into well by trickster. A weeping boy tells a passing thief that he has lost a silver cup in a well. The thief takes off his clothes and goes after the cup, intending to keep it. He finds nothing. When he comes up, his clothes have been stolen. K345.2
• Conqueror of robber discovers his money-stick. Thinking that he has killed the robber, the man takes his stick or knife with big handle. The robber recovers and, disguised as a beggar, inquisitively looks at the stick. The man is suspicious and by examining finds much money inside it. K437.4
• Wife takes servant's place and discovers husband's adultery. The husband says that he is going into a state of meditation with a cloth over his face. He substitutes a servant and goes to his mistress. The wife finds the deceit and takes the servant's place. On his return the husband tells the supposed servant of his adultery. K1585
• Sham miracle: may the grass grow up! Tricksters who have done no mowing say to their master when he angers them, "May the grass grow up again!" He finds it is full height. K1975
• The girl who ate so little. When the suitor sees her baking he finds that she can eat. K1984.2
• Hypocrite breaks vow to give coin in charity. Finds coin is short weight. K2096.1
• God finds that his statue sells at low price. He prices it in a statue shop and finds that his price is lower than other gods. L417
• Wild animal finds his liberty better than tame animal's ease. L451
• The devil helps man study for priesthood. For this, he must promise the devil his soul. Having become a great priest, the man finds means to save himself. M216.1
• Man finds treasure he refused as gift. N224
• Leopard tied in bag in water floats to shore and finds a mate. Grateful to trickster who has tied him up. N228