Great Expectations — Page 5

English → It Chapter II. Level 8/10

My sister had a trenchant way of cutting our bread and butter for us, that never varied.

Mia sorella aveva un modo deciso di tagliarci il pane e burro, che non variava mai.

First, with her left hand she jammed the loaf hard and fast against her bib,—where it sometimes got a pin into it, and sometimes a needle, which we afterwards got into our mouths.

Prima, con la mano sinistra schiacciava il pane con forza contro il suo grembiule,—dove a volte vi entrava uno spillo, e a volte un ago, che poi ritrovavamo in bocca.

Then she took some butter (not too much) on a knife and spread it on the loaf, in an apothecary kind of way, as if she were making a plaster,—using both sides of the knife with a slapping dexterity, and trimming and moulding the butter off round the crust.

Poi prendeva un po' di burro (non troppo) su un coltello e lo spalmava sul pane, alla maniera di uno speziale, come se stesse preparando un impiastro,—usando entrambi i lati del coltello con una destrezza da schiaffi, e rifinendo e modellando il burro attorno alla crosta.

Then, she gave the knife a final smart wipe on the edge of the plaster, and then sawed a very thick round off the loaf: which she finally, before separating from the loaf, hewed into two halves, of which Joe got one, and I the other.

Poi, dava al coltello un ultimo pulito energico sul bordo dell'impiastro, e quindi segava una fetta molto spessa dal pane: che infine, prima di separarla dal filone, divideva in due metà, delle quali Joe prendeva una, e io l'altra.

On the present occasion, though I was hungry, I dared not eat my slice.

In quell'occasione, pur essendo affamato, non osai mangiare la mia fetta.

I felt that I must have something in reserve for my dreadful acquaintance, and his ally the still more dreadful young man.

Sentivo che dovevo tenere qualcosa in riserva per il mio terribile conoscente, e per il suo complice, il giovane ancora più terribile.

I knew Mrs. Joe's housekeeping to be of the strictest kind, and that my larcenous researches might find nothing available in the safe.

Sapevo che la gestione domestica della signora Joe era del tipo più rigido, e che le mie ricerche furtive avrebbero potuto non trovare nulla di disponibile nella dispensa.

Therefore I resolved to put my hunk of bread and butter down the leg of my trousers.

Perciò decisi di infilare il mio pezzo di pane e burro nella gamba dei miei pantaloni.

The effort of resolution necessary to the achievement of this purpose I found to be quite awful.

Lo sforzo di determinazione necessario per raggiungere questo scopo mi sembrò davvero terribile.

Vocabulary

sorella: Female sibling; sister.
aveva: Third person singular past of 'avere'; she/he had.
modo: Manner, way, or method of doing something.
deciso: Resolute, determined, decided; firm in manner.
tagliarci: To cut for us; infinitive 'tagliare' with clitic 'ci'.
pane: Bread; a basic baked food staple.
burro: Butter; dairy spread made from cream.
variava: It varied; imperfect tense of 'variare'.
mai: Adverb meaning never or ever.
Prima: First; beforehand; adverb of time or order.
mano: Hand; the human appendage at the end of the arm.
sinistra: Left; the direction opposite to right.
schiacciava: She pressed or squashed; imperfect of 'schiacciare'.
forza: Force, strength; physical or mental power.
contro: Preposition meaning 'against'.
grembiule: Apron; protective garment worn over clothing while cooking.
volte: Times; plural of 'volta', indicating occurrences.
vi: Pronoun/adverb meaning 'there' or 'you' (plural).
entrava: It entered; imperfect tense of 'entrare'.
spillo: Pin; a small sharp fastening tool.
ago: Needle; a thin pointed sewing instrument.
poi: Then, afterwards; adverb indicating sequence.
ritrovavamo: We found again; imperfect of 'ritrovare'.
bocca: Mouth; the oral cavity used for eating and speaking.
prendeva: She took; imperfect tense of 'prendere'.
po': A little; abbreviated form of 'poco'.
troppo: Too much; excess in quantity or degree.
coltello: Knife; a cutting tool with a blade and handle.
spalmava: She spread; imperfect of 'spalmare', to spread onto surface.
maniera: Manner, style, way of doing something.
speziale: Apothecary or spice merchant; old-fashioned specialist tradesman.
stesse: She were; imperfect subjunctive of 'stare'.
preparando: Preparing; gerund of 'preparare'.
impiastro: Poultice or plaster; a medicated paste applied to skin.
usando: Using; gerund of 'usare'.
entrambi: Both; referring to two things or people together.
lati: Sides; plural of 'lato', face or side of an object.
destrezza: Dexterity, skill; adeptness in using one's hands.
schiaffi: Slaps; plural of 'schiaffo', a smacking blow.
rifinendo: Finishing, refining; gerund of 'rifinire'.
modellando: Shaping, molding; gerund of 'modellare'.
attorno: Around; adverb indicating surrounding or encircling.
crosta: Crust; the hard outer surface of bread.
dava: She gave; imperfect tense of 'dare'.
ultimo: Last, final; the concluding one in a sequence.
pulito: Clean, neat; adjective describing cleanliness or tidiness.
energico: Energetic, vigorous; done with force and liveliness.
bordo: Edge, border; the outer rim or margin of something.
quindi: Therefore, then; conjunction indicating consequence or sequence.
segava: She sawed; imperfect of 'segare', to saw or slice.
fetta: Slice; a flat cut portion of bread or food.
spessa: Thick; having great depth or width.
infine: Finally, at last; adverb marking the last step.
prima: Before; adverb or adjective indicating precedence in time.
separarla: To separate it; infinitive 'separare' with feminine clitic.
filone: Loaf; a long elongated bread or lode.
divideva: She divided; imperfect tense of 'dividere'.
metà: Half; one of two equal parts of a whole.
quali: Which; relative pronoun referring to previously mentioned items.
altra: Other; the remaining or different one (feminine).
quell': That; demonstrative adjective elided before a vowel.
occasione: Occasion, opportunity; a particular time or event.
pur: Even though, although; concessive conjunction (short form).
essendo: Being; gerund of 'essere'.
affamato: Hungry, starving; feeling a strong need for food.
osai: I dared; first person singular passato remoto of 'osare'.
mangiare: To eat; the basic act of consuming food.
Sentivo: I felt or heard; imperfect of 'sentire'.
dovevo: I had to, must; imperfect of 'dovere'.
tenere: To hold, keep; to maintain or reserve something.
qualcosa: Something; an indefinite pronoun for an unspecified thing.
riserva: Reserve; something kept aside for future use.
terribile: Terrible, dreadful; causing great fear or distress.
conoscente: Acquaintance; someone known but not a close friend.
complice: Accomplice, partner; one who aids in wrongdoing.
giovane: Young; a person of youthful age.
ancora: Still, yet, again; adverb of time or continuation.
più: More; comparative adverb indicating greater degree.
Sapevo: I knew; imperfect of 'sapere', to know a fact.
gestione: Management, administration; the running of a household or business.
domestica: Domestic, household; relating to the home or housekeeping.
signora: Lady, Mrs.; a polite form of address for a woman.
tipo: Type, kind; a category or sort of something.
rigido: Rigid, strict; inflexible in rules or behavior.
ricerche: Searches, investigations; plural of 'ricerca'.
furtive: Furtive, stealthy; done secretly to avoid detection.
avrebbero: They would have; conditional of 'avere'.
potuto: Been able to; past participle of 'potere'.
trovare: To find; to discover or locate something.
nulla: Nothing; absence of anything, no thing.
disponibile: Available; ready for use or accessible.
dispensa: Pantry, larder; a room or cupboard for storing food.
Perciò: Therefore, so; conjunction indicating a logical conclusion.
decisi: I decided; first person singular passato remoto of 'decidere'.
infilare: To slip into, thread; to insert through a narrow opening.
pezzo: Piece, chunk; a portion or fragment of something.
gamba: Leg; a limb of the human body used for walking.
pantaloni: Trousers, pants; a garment covering the lower body.
sforzo: Effort, exertion; the energy required to accomplish something.
determinazione: Determination; firm resolve to achieve a goal.
necessario: Necessary; required, indispensable for a purpose.
raggiungere: To reach, achieve; to attain a destination or goal.
scopo: Purpose, goal; the aim or objective of an action.
sembrò: It seemed; third person singular passato remoto of 'sembrare'.
davvero: Really, truly; adverb emphasizing truth or sincerity.

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