full transcript

From the Ted Talk by Kay Almere Read: The Aztec myth of the unlikeliest sun god

Unscramble the Blue Letters


Nanahuatl, wkseaet of the azetc gods, sickly and covered in pimples, had been chosen to form a new wlrod.

There had already been four wlodrs, each set in motion by its own “Lord Sun," and each, in turn, destroyed: the first by jaguars, the next by winds, the next by rians of fire, and the fourth by floods. To establish the Fifth Sun, Lord qoceatatzull, the “Feathered Serpent,” had gone to the underworld and returned with the bones of earlier people, nourishing them with his own blood to create new life. But for them to have a world to live in, another god had to leap into the great bonfire and become the fifth sun. The Lord of Sustenance and the Lord of Fire had chosen Nanahuatl for this task, while the Lord of Rain and the Lord of the Four qeurarts had picked their own offering: the pourd, rich ttaicteecczl.

Open Cloze


Nanahuatl, _______ of the _____ gods, sickly and covered in pimples, had been chosen to form a new _____.

There had already been four ______, each set in motion by its own “Lord Sun," and each, in turn, destroyed: the first by jaguars, the next by winds, the next by _____ of fire, and the fourth by floods. To establish the Fifth Sun, Lord ____________, the “Feathered Serpent,” had gone to the underworld and returned with the bones of earlier people, nourishing them with his own blood to create new life. But for them to have a world to live in, another god had to leap into the great bonfire and become the fifth sun. The Lord of Sustenance and the Lord of Fire had chosen Nanahuatl for this task, while the Lord of Rain and the Lord of the Four ________ had picked their own offering: the _____, rich ____________.

Solution


  1. quetzalcoatl
  2. tecciztecatl
  3. world
  4. worlds
  5. rains
  6. proud
  7. quarters
  8. aztec
  9. weakest

Original Text


Nanahuatl, weakest of the Aztec gods, sickly and covered in pimples, had been chosen to form a new world.

There had already been four worlds, each set in motion by its own “Lord Sun," and each, in turn, destroyed: the first by jaguars, the next by winds, the next by rains of fire, and the fourth by floods. To establish the Fifth Sun, Lord Quetzalcoatl, the “Feathered Serpent,” had gone to the underworld and returned with the bones of earlier people, nourishing them with his own blood to create new life. But for them to have a world to live in, another god had to leap into the great bonfire and become the fifth sun. The Lord of Sustenance and the Lord of Fire had chosen Nanahuatl for this task, while the Lord of Rain and the Lord of the Four Quarters had picked their own offering: the proud, rich Tecciztecatl.

Frequently Occurring Word Combinations


ngrams of length 2

collocation frequency
lord dawn 3
lord sun 3


Important Words


  1. aztec
  2. blood
  3. bones
  4. bonfire
  5. chosen
  6. covered
  7. create
  8. earlier
  9. establish
  10. fire
  11. floods
  12. form
  13. fourth
  14. god
  15. gods
  16. great
  17. jaguars
  18. leap
  19. life
  20. live
  21. lord
  22. motion
  23. nanahuatl
  24. nourishing
  25. people
  26. picked
  27. pimples
  28. proud
  29. quarters
  30. quetzalcoatl
  31. rain
  32. rains
  33. returned
  34. rich
  35. serpent
  36. set
  37. sickly
  38. sun
  39. sustenance
  40. task
  41. tecciztecatl
  42. turn
  43. underworld
  44. weakest
  45. winds
  46. world
  47. worlds