Adventures of Huckleberry Finn — Page 3
After supper she got out her book and learned me about Moses and the Bulrushers, and I was in a sweat to find out all about him; but by-and-by she let it out that Moses had been dead a considerable long time; so then I didn't care no more about him, because I don't take no stock in dead people.
Después de la cena, sacó su libro y me enseñó sobre Moisés y los juncos, y yo estaba ansioso por saber todo sobre él; pero al poco tiempo ella dejó escapar que Moisés había muerto hacía bastante tiempo; así que entonces ya no me importó más, porque a mí los muertos no me interesan nada.
Pretty soon I wanted to smoke, and asked the widow to let me.
Al poco rato me entraron ganas de fumar, y le pedí a la viuda que me dejara.
But she wouldn't.
Pero no quiso.
She said it was a mean practice and wasn't clean, and I must try to not do it any more.
Dijo que era una costumbre ruin y nada limpia, y que debía intentar no hacerlo más.
That is just the way with some people.
Así son algunas personas.
They get down on a thing when they don't know nothing about it.
Se ponen en contra de algo cuando no saben nada al respecto.
Here she was a-bothering about Moses, which was no kin to her, and no use to anybody, being gone, you see, yet finding a power of fault with me for doing a thing that had some good in it.
Ahí estaba ella preocupándose por Moisés, que no era pariente suyo y no le servía de nada a nadie, estando muerto como estaba, ¿entienden?, y sin embargo encontrando un montón de defectos en mí por hacer algo que tenía su utilidad.
And she took snuff, too; of course that was all right, because she done it herself.
Y ella también tomaba rapé; claro que eso estaba bien, porque lo hacía ella misma.
Her sister, Miss Watson, a tolerable slim old maid, with goggles on, had just come to live with her, and took a set at me now with a spelling-book.
Su hermana, la señorita Watson, una solterona bastante delgada, con gafas, acababa de venir a vivir con ella, y ahora me acorraló con un libro de ortografía.
She worked me middling hard for about an hour, and then the widow made her ease up.
Me hizo trabajar bastante duro durante aproximadamente una hora, y luego la viuda le dijo que parara.
I couldn't stood it much longer.
No hubiera podido aguantarlo mucho más.
Then for an hour it was deadly dull, and I was fidgety.
Luego, durante una hora, todo fue tremendamente aburrido, y yo estaba inquieto.
Vocabulary
- Después
- Indicates something happening at a later time; afterward
- cena
- The evening meal; dinner or supper
- sacó
- Past tense of sacar; took out or pulled out
- libro
- A bound written or printed work; book
- enseñó
- Past tense of enseñar; taught or showed someone something
- sobre
- Preposition meaning 'about' or 'on top of'
- juncos
- Tall, slender marsh plants; reeds or rushes
- estaba
- Imperfect past tense of estar; was (in a state)
- ansioso
- Feeling eager or anxious to know or do something
- saber
- Infinitive verb meaning to know facts or information
- todo
- Adjective or pronoun meaning 'all' or 'everything'
- pero
- Conjunction meaning 'but,' introducing a contrast
- poco
- Adjective or adverb meaning 'little' or 'a little'
- tiempo
- Noun meaning 'time' or 'weather'
- dejó
- Past tense of dejar; left, let, or allowed something
- escapar
- Infinitive meaning to escape or slip out unintentionally
- había
- Past form of haber; 'there had been' or auxiliary 'had'
- muerto
- Past participle of morir; dead or deceased person
- hacía
- Imperfect of hacer; used to express time elapsed ago
- bastante
- Adverb or adjective meaning 'quite,' 'enough,' or 'fairly'
- así
- Adverb meaning 'so,' 'thus,' or 'in this way'
- entonces
- Adverb meaning 'then' or 'so,' indicating a consequence
- ya
- Adverb meaning 'already,' 'now,' or 'no longer'
- importó
- Past tense of importar; mattered or was of importance
- más
- Adverb or adjective meaning 'more' or 'anymore'
- porque
- Conjunction meaning 'because,' giving a reason or cause
- muertos
- Plural noun meaning 'dead people' or 'the deceased'
- interesan
- Third-person plural of interesar; to interest or matter to
- nada
- Pronoun or adverb meaning 'nothing' or 'not at all'
- rato
- A short period of time; a while or a moment
- entraron
- Past tense of entrar; entered or came in
- ganas
- Desire or urge to do something; 'tener ganas de'
- fumar
- Infinitive meaning to smoke, especially tobacco
- pedí
- Past tense of pedir; asked for or requested something
- viuda
- A woman whose husband has died; widow
- dejara
- Imperfect subjunctive of dejar; that she would let or allow
- Pero
- Conjunction meaning 'but,' introducing a contrast
- quiso
- Past tense of querer; wanted or refused (negative context)
- Dijo
- Past tense of decir; said or told someone something
- era
- Imperfect past tense of ser; was (describing a quality)
- costumbre
- A habit, custom, or routine practice someone follows
- ruin
- Adjective meaning vile, mean-spirited, or contemptible
- limpia
- Adjective meaning clean; also third-person form of limpiar
- debía
- Imperfect of deber; should or ought to do something
- intentar
- Infinitive meaning to try or attempt to do something
- hacerlo
- Infinitive hacer combined with pronoun; to do it
- Así
- Adverb meaning 'that's how' or 'such is the way'
- algunas
- Feminine plural of alguno; some or certain people or things
- personas
- Plural noun meaning people or individuals
- ponen
- Third-person plural of poner; put, place, or become
- contra
- Preposition meaning 'against,' opposing something or someone
- algo
- Indefinite pronoun meaning 'something' or 'anything'
- cuando
- Conjunction or adverb meaning 'when'
- saben
- Third-person plural of saber; they know facts or information
- respecto
- Noun meaning 'regard' or 'respect'; used in 'al respecto'
- Ahí
- Adverb meaning 'there,' pointing to a nearby location
- preocupándose
- Reflexive gerund of preocupar; worrying or concerning oneself
- pariente
- A relative or family member by blood or marriage
- suyo
- Possessive pronoun meaning 'his,' 'hers,' or 'theirs'
- servía
- Imperfect of servir; was useful, served, or was good for
- nadie
- Indefinite pronoun meaning 'nobody' or 'no one'
- estando
- Gerund of estar; being in a state or condition
- como
- Conjunction or adverb meaning 'like,' 'as,' or 'how'
- ¿entienden?
- Question form of entender; do they/you all understand?
- sin
- Preposition meaning 'without,' indicating absence of something
- embargo
- Used in 'sin embargo' meaning 'however' or 'nevertheless'
- encontrando
- Gerund of encontrar; finding or coming across something
- montón
- A large quantity or pile; a lot of something
- defectos
- Plural noun meaning faults, flaws, or defects
- hacer
- Infinitive meaning to do or to make something
- tenía
- Imperfect of tener; had or used to have something
- utilidad
- Noun meaning usefulness, utility, or practical value
- también
- Adverb meaning 'also' or 'too,' adding information
- tomaba
- Imperfect of tomar; used to take or consume regularly
- rapé
- Finely ground tobacco inhaled through the nose; snuff
- claro
- Adjective or adverb meaning 'clear' or 'of course'
- eso
- Neutral demonstrative pronoun meaning 'that' thing
- bien
- Adverb meaning 'well' or 'fine'; also noun meaning 'good'
- misma
- Feminine form of mismo; herself, same, or very same
- hermana
- Female sibling; sister
- señorita
- Title for an unmarried woman; Miss
- solterona
- An older unmarried woman; spinster
- delgada
- Adjective meaning thin or slender, describing a woman
- gafas
- Eyeglasses worn to correct or protect one's vision
- acababa
- Imperfect of acabar; had just done or was finishing something
- venir
- Infinitive meaning to come toward the speaker's location
- vivir
- Infinitive meaning to live, reside, or be alive
- ahora
- Adverb meaning 'now' or 'at this moment'
- acorraló
- Past tense of acorralar; cornered or trapped someone
- ortografía
- The correct spelling conventions of a language; spelling
- hizo
- Past tense of hacer; made or caused someone to do something
- trabajar
- Infinitive meaning to work or to labor at a task
- duro
- Adjective or adverb meaning 'hard' in effort or texture
- durante
- Preposition meaning 'during' or 'for' a period of time
- aproximadamente
- Adverb meaning 'approximately' or 'about' a quantity
- hora
- A unit of time equal to sixty minutes; hour
- luego
- Adverb meaning 'then,' 'later,' or 'afterward'
- dijo
- Past tense of decir; said or told someone something
- parara
- Imperfect subjunctive of parar; that someone should stop
- hubiera
- Past subjunctive of haber; would have or had (hypothetical)
- podido
- Past participle of poder; been able to do something
- aguantarlo
- Infinitive aguantar plus pronoun; to endure or stand it
- mucho
- Adverb or adjective meaning 'a lot,' 'much,' or 'many'
- Luego
- Adverb meaning 'then' or 'later,' indicating sequence
- fue
- Past tense of ser or ir; was or went
- tremendamente
- Adverb meaning 'tremendously' or 'extremely,' intensifying adjectives
- aburrido
- Adjective meaning bored or boring; tedious and uninteresting
- inquieto
- Adjective meaning restless, uneasy, or anxious
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