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."
On pouvait à peine appeler cela un commerce, malgré sa description favorite de lui-même comme « un honnête commerçant ».
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: 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.
Son fonds de commerce consistait en un tabouret de bois, fabriqué à partir d'une chaise à dossier cassé sciée en deux, lequel tabouret, le jeune Jerry, marchant aux côtés de son père, portait chaque matin sous la fenêtre de la banque la plus proche de Temple Bar : où, avec l'ajout de la première poignée de paille qui pouvait être ramassée sur quelque véhicule passant pour protéger du froid et de l'humidité les pieds de l'homme à tout faire, il formait le campement pour la journée.
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.
À ce poste qui était le sien, M. Cruncher était aussi bien connu de Fleet Street et du Temple que le Bar lui-même, et avait presque le même air renfrogné.
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.
Installé à neuf heures moins le quart, juste à temps pour toucher son chapeau à trois cornes aux plus anciens des hommes qui entraient chez Tellson, Jerry prit son poste en ce venteux matin de mars, le jeune Jerry se tenant à ses côtés, quand il n'était pas occupé à faire des incursions à travers le Bar pour infliger des blessures corporelles et mentales de nature aiguë aux garçons de passage qui étaient assez petits pour servir son aimable dessein.
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.
Le père et le fils, se ressemblant à l'extrême, regardant en silence la circulation matinale dans Fleet Street, leurs deux têtes aussi proches l'une de l'autre que pouvaient l'être les deux yeux de chacun, présentaient une ressemblance considérable avec une paire de singes.
Vocabulary
- On
- Impersonal pronoun meaning 'one' or 'we'
- pouvait
- Past tense of 'pouvoir'; could, was able to
- à
- Preposition meaning 'at,' 'to,' or 'in'
- peine
- Hardly, barely; also means sorrow or effort
- appeler
- To call, to name something or someone
- cela
- Demonstrative pronoun meaning 'that' or 'it'
- un
- Indefinite article meaning 'a' or 'one'
- commerce
- Trade, business, or commercial activity
- malgré
- Despite, in spite of something
- sa
- Possessive adjective meaning 'his,' 'her,' or 'its'
- description
- A written or spoken account of something
- de
- Preposition meaning 'of,' 'from,' or 'about'
- lui-même
- Reflexive pronoun meaning 'himself'
- comme
- As, like; used for comparison or manner
- honnête
- Honest, upright, morally straightforward
- commerçant
- A merchant, trader, or shopkeeper
- Son
- Possessive adjective meaning 'his,' 'her,' or 'its'
- fonds
- Stock, funds, or basic resources of a business
- consistait
- Imperfect tense of 'consister'; consisted of something
- en
- Preposition meaning 'in,' 'on,' or 'made of'
- tabouret
- A small stool without a back or arms
- bois
- Wood, or a small forest or woodland
- fabriqué
- Made, manufactured, or constructed from materials
- partir
- To leave; also used in 'à partir de' meaning 'from'
- d'une
- Contraction of 'de une'; of a, from a
- chaise
- A chair, a piece of seating furniture
- dossier
- The back of a chair; also a file or folder
- cassé
- Broken, damaged, no longer functional
- deux
- The number two
- lequel
- Relative pronoun meaning 'which' or 'whom'
- le
- Definite article meaning 'the' (masculine singular)
- jeune
- Young, youthful in age or appearance
- marchant
- Walking, marching; present participle of 'marcher'
- aux
- Contraction of 'à les'; at the, to the (plural)
- côtés
- Sides; 'aux côtés de' means 'alongside' someone
- son
- Possessive adjective meaning 'his,' 'her,' or 'its'
- père
- Father, male parent
- portait
- Imperfect of 'porter'; was carrying or wearing
- chaque
- Each, every individual item or instance
- matin
- Morning, the early part of the day
- sous
- Under, beneath, below something
- la
- Definite article meaning 'the' (feminine singular)
- fenêtre
- A window in a wall or building
- banque
- A bank, financial institution
- plus
- More; also used in negation 'ne...plus' (no more)
- proche
- Near, close, nearby in distance
- l'ajout
- The addition, something added to something else
- première
- First, occurring before all others
- poignée
- A handful; also a handle of an object
- paille
- Straw, dried stalks used for bedding or protection
- qui
- Relative pronoun meaning 'who,' 'which,' or 'that'
- être
- To be; fundamental linking or auxiliary verb
- ramassée
- Picked up, gathered from the ground
- sur
- On, upon, over a surface or subject
- quelque
- Some, a certain unspecified amount or thing
- véhicule
- A vehicle, means of transport
- passant
- Passing by; a passerby on the street
- pour
- For, in order to, for the purpose of
- protéger
- To protect, to shield from harm or damage
- du
- Contraction of 'de le'; of the, from the
- froid
- Cold, low temperature or the sensation thereof
- et
- And, connecting words or phrases together
- l'humidité
- Humidity, moisture, dampness in the air
- les
- Definite article meaning 'the' (plural)
- pieds
- Feet, the lower extremities of the body
- l'homme
- The man; adult male person
- tout
- All, everything, entirely; very versatile word
- faire
- To do, to make; highly versatile common verb
- il
- He, it; third-person masculine singular pronoun
- formait
- Imperfect of 'former'; formed, was forming something
- journée
- A day, the duration of a full daytime period
- À
- Preposition meaning 'at,' 'to,' 'in' (accented)
- ce
- Demonstrative adjective or pronoun meaning 'this'
- poste
- A post, position, or assigned station
- était
- Imperfect of 'être'; was, used to be
- sien
- Possessive pronoun meaning 'his,' 'hers,' or 'its own'
- M.
- Abbreviation for 'Monsieur'; Mr., a male title
- aussi
- Also, too, as well; used for addition or comparison
- bien
- Well, good; used to indicate quality or manner
- connu
- Known, familiar, recognized by others
- que
- That, which, than; versatile conjunction or pronoun
- avait
- Imperfect of 'avoir'; had, used to have
- presque
- Almost, nearly, not quite fully
- même
- Same, even; used for emphasis or identity
- air
- Air; also an appearance, look, or manner
- renfrogné
- Scowling, frowning, having a sullen expression
- Installé
- Settled, installed, set up in a place
- neuf
- Nine; also means 'new' in another context
- heures
- Hours; used in telling time in French
- moins
- Less, minus; used in time expressions or comparison
- quart
- Quarter; one-fourth, as in quarter past or to
- juste
- Just, exactly, fair, or barely sufficient
- temps
- Time; also weather depending on context
- toucher
- To touch, to reach, to receive payment
- chapeau
- A hat worn on the head
- trois
- The number three
- cornes
- Horns; 'chapeau à trois cornes' is a tricorn hat
- anciens
- Old, former, ancient; older men or predecessors
- des
- Indefinite plural article meaning 'some' or 'of the'
- hommes
- Men, human beings (plural of 'homme')
- entraient
- Imperfect of 'entrer'; were entering, used to enter
- chez
- At the place of, at someone's home or establishment
- prit
- Simple past of 'prendre'; took, seized something
- venteux
- Windy, characterized by strong winds
- mars
- March, the third month of the year
- se
- Reflexive pronoun meaning 'himself,' 'herself,' or 'itself'
- tenant
- Holding, keeping; present participle of 'tenir'
- ses
- Possessive adjective meaning 'his,' 'her,' or 'its' (plural)
- quand
- When; used in time clauses or questions
- n'était
- Negated imperfect of 'être'; was not
- pas
- Not; used with 'ne' to form negation
- occupé
- Busy, occupied, engaged in an activity
- travers
- Through; 'à travers' means across or through something
- blessures
- Wounds, injuries, physical or emotional hurts
- mentales
- Mental, relating to the mind or intellect
- nature
- Nature; also type, kind, or character of something
- aiguë
- Acute, sharp, intense; feminine form of 'aigu'
- garçons
- Boys, young males; also waiters in a café
- passage
- A passageway; also the act of passing through
- étaient
- Imperfect of 'être'; were, used to be (plural)
- assez
- Enough, sufficiently; quite or rather informal
- petits
- Small, little, short in size (masculine plural)
- servir
- To serve, to be used for a purpose
- aimable
- Kind, friendly, pleasant toward others
- Le
- Definite article meaning 'the' (masculine singular)
- fils
- Son, a male child in relation to parents
- ressemblant
- Resembling, looking like; present participle of 'ressembler'
- l'extrême
- The extreme; to the utmost or greatest degree
- regardant
- Looking at, watching; present participle of 'regarder'
- silence
- Silence, absence of sound or speech
- circulation
- Traffic, flow of vehicles or people through an area
- matinale
- Morning (adjective); relating to the early morning hours
- dans
- In, inside, within a space or time period
- leurs
- Possessive adjective meaning 'their' (plural)
- têtes
- Heads, the uppermost part of the body (plural)
- proches
- Close, near; nearby in space or relation (plural)
- l'une
- The one (feminine); used in expressions like 'l'une l'autre'
- l'autre
- The other; used to contrast with 'l'un' or 'l'une'
- pouvaient
- Imperfect of 'pouvoir'; could, were able to (plural)
- yeux
- Eyes, the organs of sight (irregular plural of 'œil')
- chacun
- Each one, everyone individually
- présentaient
- Imperfect of 'présenter'; showed, displayed, presented
- une
- Indefinite article meaning 'a' or 'one' (feminine)
- ressemblance
- Resemblance, likeness, similarity between two things
- considérable
- Considerable, significant, notably large in degree
- paire
- A pair, two matching or related items together
- singes
- Monkeys or apes; primates (plural of 'singe')
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