Crime and Punishment — Page 6
This house was let out in tiny tenements and was inhabited by working people of all kinds--tailors, locksmiths, cooks, Germans of sorts, girls picking up a living as best they could, petty clerks, etc.
Questa casa era affittata in piccoli appartamenti ed era abitata da lavoratori di ogni tipo: sarti, fabbri, cuochi, tedeschi di vario genere, ragazze che si guadagnavano da vivere come meglio potevano, piccoli impiegati, ecc.
There was a continual coming and going through the two gates and in the two courtyards of the house.
C'era un continuo viavai attraverso i due cancelli e nei due cortili della casa.
Three or four door-keepers were employed on the building.
Tre o quattro portieri erano impiegati nell'edificio.
The young man was very glad to meet none of them, and at once slipped unnoticed through the door on the right, and up the staircase.
Il giovane fu molto contento di non incontrarne nessuno, e subito scivolò inosservato attraverso la porta a destra, e su per la scala.
It was a back staircase, dark and narrow, but he was familiar with it already, and knew his way, and he liked all these surroundings: in such darkness even the most inquisitive eyes were not to be dreaded.
Era una scala di servizio, buia e stretta, ma lui la conosceva già e sapeva come orientarsi, e gli piacevano tutti questi ambienti: in tale oscurità nemmeno gli occhi più curiosi erano da temere.
"If I am so scared now, what would it be if it somehow came to pass that I were really going to do it?" he could not help asking himself as he reached the fourth storey.
«Se ora ho così tanta paura, cosa sarebbe se in qualche modo accadesse che stessi davvero per farlo?» non poté fare a meno di chiedersi mentre raggiungeva il quarto piano.
There his progress was barred by some porters who were engaged in moving furniture out of a flat.
Lì il suo cammino fu bloccato da alcuni facchini che erano impegnati a spostare mobili fuori da un appartamento.
He knew that the flat had been occupied by a German clerk in the civil service, and his family.
Sapeva che l'appartamento era stato occupato da un impiegato tedesco della pubblica amministrazione e dalla sua famiglia.
This German was moving out then, and so the fourth floor on this staircase would be untenanted except by the old woman.
Questo tedesco se ne stava andando dunque, e così il quarto piano di questa scala sarebbe rimasto senza inquilini ad eccezione della vecchia.
"That's a good thing anyway," he thought to himself, as he rang the bell of the old woman's flat.
«È comunque una buona cosa,» pensò tra sé, mentre suonava il campanello dell'appartamento della vecchia.
Vocabulary
- Questa
- KWES-tah — Feminine demonstrative pronoun meaning 'this'
- casa
- KAH-zah — A building where people live; a home
- era
- EH-rah — Third person singular imperfect of 'essere'; was
- affittata
- af-fit-TAH-tah — Rented out, leased to tenants
- piccoli
- PEE-koh-lee — Plural adjective meaning small or little
- appartamenti
- ap-par-tah-MEN-tee — Individual residential units within a larger building
- abitata
- ah-bee-TAH-tah — Inhabited, lived in by residents
- lavoratori
- lah-voh-rah-TOH-ree — People who work; workers or laborers
- ogni
- OH-nyee — Adjective meaning every or each type
- tipo
- TEE-poh — A kind, sort, or category of thing
- sarti
- SAR-tee — Tailors; people who sew and make clothes
- fabbri
- FAB-bree — Blacksmiths; craftsmen who work with metal
- cuochi
- KWOH-kee — Cooks; people who professionally prepare food
- tedeschi
- teh-DES-kee — Germans; people of German nationality or origin
- vario
- VAH-ryoh — Various, diverse, of different kinds
- genere
- JEH-neh-reh — Type, kind, or gender of something
- ragazze
- rah-GAT-tseh — Girls or young women
- guadagnavano
- gwah-dah-NYAH-vah-noh — They were earning money through work
- vivere
- VEE-veh-reh — To live; the act of sustaining one's life
- meglio
- MEH-lyoh — Adverb meaning better or best possible way
- potevano
- poh-TEH-vah-noh — They were able to; imperfect of potere
- impiegati
- im-pyeh-GAH-tee — Office clerks or white-collar employees
- continuo
- kon-TEE-nwoh — Continuous, unceasing, constant movement or activity
- viavai
- vyah-VAH-ee — Constant coming and going; bustle of people
- attraverso
- at-trah-VER-soh — Preposition meaning through or across something
- cancelli
- kan-CHEL-lee — Gates or iron barriers at entrances
- cortili
- kor-TEE-lee — Courtyards; open spaces enclosed by buildings
- portieri
- por-TYEH-ree — Doormen or concierges managing a building entrance
- erano
- EH-rah-noh — They were; third person plural imperfect of essere
- edificio
- eh-dee-FEE-choh — A building or constructed structure
- giovane
- JOH-vah-neh — A young person; adjective meaning young
- fu
- foo — Third person singular passato remoto of essere; was
- molto
- MOL-toh — Adverb or adjective meaning very or much
- contento
- kon-TEN-toh — Happy, pleased, satisfied with something
- incontrarne
- in-kon-TRAR-neh — To encounter or meet any of them
- nessuno
- nes-SOO-noh — Pronoun meaning nobody, no one, none
- subito
- SOO-bee-toh — Immediately, right away, at once
- scivolò
- shee-voh-LOH — He slipped or slid past quickly unnoticed
- inosservato
- in-os-ser-VAH-toh — Unnoticed, unobserved, without attracting attention
- porta
- POR-tah — A door or gate of a building
- destra
- DES-trah — The right side or right-hand direction
- scala
- SKAH-lah — A staircase or flight of stairs in building
- Era
- EH-rah — It was; imperfect third person singular of essere
- servizio
- ser-VEE-tsyoh — Service staircase; utility service area
- buia
- BOO-yah — Dark, without light, unlit (feminine adjective)
- stretta
- STRET-tah — Narrow, tight, restricted in width
- conosceva
- koh-noh-SHEH-vah — He knew or was familiar with something
- già
- JAH — Adverb meaning already or before now
- sapeva
- sah-PEH-vah — He knew how to do something; imperfect
- orientarsi
- oh-ryen-TAR-see — To orient oneself; find one's way around
- piacevano
- pyah-CHEH-vah-noh — They pleased him; he liked them (imperfect)
- tutti
- TOOT-tee — All, every one of a group
- questi
- KWES-tee — Masculine plural demonstrative meaning these
- ambienti
- am-BYEN-tee — Environments, rooms, or surrounding spaces
- tale
- TAH-leh — Such, of this kind, of that sort
- oscurità
- os-koo-ree-TAH — Darkness, obscurity, absence of light
- nemmeno
- nem-MEH-noh — Not even, not at all, neither
- occhi
- OK-kee — Eyes; the organs of sight
- più
- pyoo — Adverb meaning more or most
- curiosi
- koo-RYOH-zee — Curious, nosy, eager to observe others
- temere
- teh-MEH-reh — To fear or be afraid of something
- ora
- OH-rah — Now, at this moment; also means hour
- così
- koh-ZEE — Adverb meaning so, thus, in this way
- tanta
- TAN-tah — So much, a great deal of (feminine)
- paura
- pah-OO-rah — Fear, fright, a feeling of being scared
- cosa
- KOH-zah — Thing; also used as what in questions
- sarebbe
- sah-REB-beh — It would be; conditional of essere
- qualche
- KWAL-keh — Some, a few, any (with singular noun)
- modo
- Way, manner, or means of doing something
- accadesse
- ak-kah-DES-seh — It happened; subjunctive imperfect of accadere
- stessi
- STES-see — I were; imperfect subjunctive of stare
- davvero
- dav-VEH-roh — Really, truly, in fact, indeed
- farlo
- FAR-loh — To do it; infinitive with object pronoun attached
- poté
- poh-TEH — He was able to; passato remoto of potere
- fare
- FAH-reh — To do or make; common Italian verb
- meno
- MEH-noh — Less; used in expressions like fare a meno
- chiedersi
- KYEH-dehr-see — To ask oneself; to wonder about something reflexively
- mentre
- MEN-treh — While, meanwhile, as something else happens simultaneously
- raggiungeva
- rad-JUN-JEH-vah — He was reaching or arriving at a place
- quarto
- KWAR-toh — Fourth; ordinal number after third
- piano
- PYAH-noh — Floor or storey of a building
- Lì
- lee — Adverb of place meaning there, in that place
- cammino
- kam-MEE-noh — Path, journey, or way forward
- bloccato
- blok-KAH-toh — Blocked, stopped, obstructed from continuing
- alcuni
- al-KOO-nee — Some, a few (masculine plural)
- facchini
- fak-KEE-nee — Porters; workers who carry heavy loads
- impegnati
- im-peh-NYAH-tee — Busy, engaged, occupied with a task
- spostare
- spos-TAH-reh — To move, shift, or relocate objects
- mobili
- MOH-bee-lee — Furniture; moveable household objects
- fuori
- FWOH-ree — Outside, out of, beyond a place
- appartamento
- ap-par-tah-MEN-toh — A flat or apartment unit in a building
- Sapeva
- sah-PEH-vah — He knew; third person imperfect of sapere
- stato
- STAH-toh — State or condition; also past participle of essere
- occupato
- ok-koo-PAH-toh — Occupied, in use, taken by someone
- impiegato
- im-pyeh-GAH-toh — A clerk or office employee
- tedesco
- teh-DES-koh — German; relating to Germany (singular form)
- pubblica
- POOB-blee-kah — Public, relating to the state or community
- amministrazione
- am-mee-nee-strah-TSYOH-neh — Administration; management of public or organizational affairs
- famiglia
- fah-MEE-lyah — Family; a group of related people living together
- Questo
- KWES-toh — Masculine demonstrative pronoun meaning this
- ne
- neh — Pronoun meaning of it, of them, from there
- stava
- STAH-vah — He was (doing something); imperfect of stare
- andando
- an-DAN-doh — Going; present participle of andare
- dunque
- DOON-kweh — Therefore, so, thus, consequently
- questa
- KWES-tah — Feminine demonstrative meaning this (thing or place)
- rimasto
- ree-MAS-toh — Remained, stayed; past participle of rimanere
- senza
- SEN-tsah — Preposition meaning without
- inquilini
- in-kwee-LEE-nee — Tenants; people who rent and live in property
- eccezione
- et-cheh-TSYOH-neh — Exception; something excluded from a general rule
- vecchia
- VEK-kyah — Old woman or old (feminine adjective)
- comunque
- koh-MOON-kweh — Anyway, however, in any case
- buona
- BWOH-nah — Good, fine, positive (feminine adjective)
- pensò
- pen-SOH — He thought; passato remoto of pensare
- tra
- trah — Preposition meaning between, among, or within
- sé
- seh — Reflexive pronoun meaning himself, herself, oneself
- suonava
- swoh-NAH-vah — He was ringing; imperfect of suonare
- campanello
- kam-pah-NEL-loh — A doorbell or small bell to announce arrival
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