A Tale of Two Cities — Page 10
It could scarcely be called a trade, in spite of his favourite description of himself as "a honest tradesman."
Apenas podía llamarse un oficio, a pesar de su descripción favorita de sí mismo como «un honrado comerciante».
His stock consisted of a wooden stool, made out of a broken-backed chair cut down, which stool, young Jerry, walking at his father's side, carried every morning to beneath the banking-house window that was nearest Temple Bar:
Su capital consistía en un taburete de madera, hecho de una silla desvencijada recortada, el cual taburete, el joven Jerry, caminando al lado de su padre, llevaba cada mañana hasta debajo de la ventana de la casa de banca más cercana al Temple Bar:
where, with the addition of the first handful of straw that could be gleaned from any passing vehicle to keep the cold and wet from the odd-job-man's feet, it formed the encampment for the day.
donde, con la adición del primer puñado de paja que podía recogerse de cualquier vehículo que pasara para mantener el frío y la humedad alejados de los pies del hombre de los recados, formaba el campamento para el día.
On this post of his, Mr. Cruncher was as well known to Fleet-street and the Temple, as the Bar itself,--and was almost as in-looking.
En este puesto suyo, el señor Cruncher era tan conocido en Fleet Street y el Temple como la propia Barra, y tenía casi el mismo aspecto de estar mirando hacia adentro.
Encamped at a quarter before nine, in good time to touch his three-cornered hat to the oldest of men as they passed in to Tellson's, Jerry took up his station on this windy March morning, with young Jerry standing by him, when not engaged in making forays through the Bar, to inflict bodily and mental injuries of an acute description on passing boys who were small enough for his amiable purpose.
Instalado en su puesto a las nueve menos cuarto, con tiempo suficiente para tocar su sombrero de tres picos a los más ancianos de los hombres al pasar hacia la casa Tellson, Jerry tomó su posición en esta ventosa mañana de marzo, con el joven Jerry a su lado, cuando no estaba ocupado en hacer incursiones a través de la Barra para infligir daños físicos y mentales de aguda índole a los muchachos que pasaban y eran suficientemente pequeños para sus amables propósitos.
Father and son, extremely like each other, looking silently on at the morning traffic in Fleet-street, with their two heads as near to one another as the two eyes of each were, bore a considerable resemblance to a pair of monkeys.
Padre e hijo, extremadamente parecidos el uno al otro, observando en silencio el tráfico matutino en Fleet Street, con sus dos cabezas tan cerca la una de la otra como lo estaban los dos ojos de cada uno, guardaban un considerable parecido con un par de monos.
Vocabulary
- Apenas
- Hardly, scarcely, barely enough of something
- podía
- Could, was able to (past imperfect of poder)
- llamarse
- To call oneself, to be named or called
- oficio
- Trade, craft, or occupation one practices
- pesar
- Despite, in spite of; also to weigh
- descripción
- Description, a verbal account of someone
- favorita
- Favorite, preferred above all others
- sí
- Himself, herself, itself (reflexive pronoun)
- mismo
- Same, himself, itself (emphatic/reflexive adjective)
- honrado
- Honest, honorable, upright in conduct
- comerciante
- Merchant, trader, someone who buys and sells
- capital
- Capital, financial assets or wealth one owns
- consistía
- Consisted of, was made up of something
- taburete
- Stool, a small seat without a back
- madera
- Wood, timber material used for construction
- hecho
- Made, done (past participle of hacer)
- silla
- Chair, a seat with a back to lean against
- desvencijada
- Rickety, broken-down, falling apart from age
- recortada
- Cut down, trimmed, reduced in size
- cual
- Which, that (relative pronoun)
- joven
- Young, youthful; a young person
- caminando
- Walking, moving on foot (present participle)
- lado
- Side, the area next to someone or something
- padre
- Father, male parent of a child
- llevaba
- Carried, took, brought (past imperfect of llevar)
- cada
- Each, every (distributive adjective)
- mañana
- Morning; also tomorrow (common Spanish noun)
- hasta
- Until, up to, as far as (preposition)
- debajo
- Below, underneath, beneath something else
- ventana
- Window, an opening in a wall for light
- casa
- House, home, a place where people live
- banca
- Banking, a financial institution or bench
- más
- More, most (comparative adverb or adjective)
- cercana
- Nearest, closest in distance or proximity
- donde
- Where, in which (relative or interrogative adverb)
- adición
- Addition, the act of adding something more
- primer
- First (masculine adjective before a noun)
- puñado
- Handful, a small amount held in one hand
- paja
- Straw, dry stalks used for bedding or covering
- recogerse
- To be gathered, picked up or collected
- cualquier
- Any, whichever (indefinite adjective)
- vehículo
- Vehicle, any means of transportation
- pasara
- Might pass, passed by (past subjunctive)
- mantener
- To keep, maintain, hold something in place
- frío
- Cold, low temperature; feeling of coldness
- humedad
- Humidity, dampness, moisture in the air
- alejados
- Kept away, distant, driven off from something
- pies
- Feet, the lower extremities of the body
- hombre
- Man, an adult male human being
- recados
- Errands, messages or small tasks to complete
- formaba
- Formed, made up, constituted something
- campamento
- Camp, a temporary place of settlement
- día
- Day, a 24-hour period of time
- este
- This (masculine demonstrative adjective or pronoun)
- puesto
- Post, position, station or stall for work
- suyo
- His, hers, its, theirs (possessive pronoun)
- señor
- Mister, sir, a polite title for a man
- era
- Was (past imperfect of ser, to be)
- tan
- So, as, such (adverb of degree)
- conocido
- Known, well-known, familiar to many people
- propia
- Own, proper, one's very own (adjective)
- Barra
- Bar, barrier, a physical or legal boundary
- tenía
- Had, possessed (past imperfect of tener)
- casi
- Almost, nearly, not quite (adverb)
- aspecto
- Appearance, aspect, the look of something
- estar
- To be (used for states, locations, conditions)
- mirando
- Looking, watching, gazing (present participle)
- hacia
- Toward, towards a direction or place
- adentro
- Inside, inward, toward the interior
- Instalado
- Installed, settled, set up in a place
- nueve
- Nine, the number 9
- menos
- Minus, less, fewer (adverb or preposition)
- cuarto
- Quarter; fourth; also a room in a house
- tiempo
- Time, weather, a period or duration
- suficiente
- Sufficient, enough, adequate for a purpose
- tocar
- To touch; to play music; to tip one's hat
- sombrero
- Hat, a head covering worn outdoors
- tres
- Three, the number 3
- picos
- Peaks, points, corners (of a three-cornered hat)
- ancianos
- Elderly men, old people, aged individuals
- hombres
- Men, adult male human beings (plural)
- pasar
- To pass, to go by, to happen
- tomó
- Took, assumed, grabbed (preterite of tomar)
- posición
- Position, a place where someone is located
- esta
- This (feminine demonstrative adjective)
- ventosa
- Windy, blustery, exposed to strong winds
- marzo
- March, the third month of the year
- cuando
- When (conjunction or interrogative adverb)
- estaba
- Was, were (past imperfect of estar)
- ocupado
- Busy, occupied, engaged in an activity
- hacer
- To do, to make (very common Spanish verb)
- incursiones
- Raids, incursions, sudden aggressive attacks
- través
- Through, across (used in 'a través de')
- infligir
- To inflict, to impose harm upon someone
- daños
- Damages, harms, injuries caused to someone
- físicos
- Physical, relating to the body (plural adjective)
- mentales
- Mental, relating to the mind (plural adjective)
- aguda
- Sharp, acute, keen in nature or intensity
- índole
- Nature, kind, character or type of something
- muchachos
- Boys, lads, young males (plural noun)
- pasaban
- Passed by, went past (past imperfect plural)
- eran
- Were (past imperfect plural of ser)
- suficientemente
- Sufficiently, adequately, enough (adverb)
- pequeños
- Small, little, young (plural adjective)
- amables
- Kind, friendly, amiable (plural adjective)
- propósitos
- Purposes, intentions, goals one has in mind
- Padre
- Father, male parent (used as a title here)
- e
- And (variant of 'y' before i- or hi- sounds)
- hijo
- Son, male child of a parent
- extremadamente
- Extremely, to a very great degree
- parecidos
- Similar, alike, resembling one another
- uno
- One (numeral or indefinite pronoun)
- otro
- Other, another (adjective or pronoun)
- observando
- Observing, watching, paying close attention
- silencio
- Silence, the complete absence of sound
- tráfico
- Traffic, the flow of vehicles on a road
- matutino
- Morning, relating to the early morning hours
- dos
- Two, the number 2
- cabezas
- Heads, the uppermost part of the body (plural)
- cerca
- Near, close, nearby (adverb of place)
- ojos
- Eyes, the organs used for seeing (plural)
- guardaban
- Kept, bore, maintained (past imperfect plural)
- considerable
- Considerable, significant, notably large in degree
- parecido
- Resemblance, similarity, likeness between things
- par
- Pair, a set of two matching things
- monos
- Monkeys, small primates; also overalls (plural)
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