Piccolissima — Page 3
She adhered to the old-fashioned notions, and could not suppose it possible that her little one could sleep without rocking.
Ella se aferraba a las nociones anticuadas, y no podía suponer posible que su pequeña pudiera dormir sin ser mecida.
What the good little mother found the most trouble from, in the extreme smallness and delicacy of the limbs of her new-born doll baby, was the impossibility of swathing and dressing it.
Lo que más dificultades le causó a la buena madrecita, dada la extrema pequeñez y delicadeza de los miembros de su recién nacida muñequita, fue la imposibilidad de envolverla y vestirla.
So she was forced to resign herself to doing as the birds do, and bring up her little one on a bed of moss and down.
Así que se vio obligada a resignarse a hacer como hacen los pájaros, y criar a su pequeña en un lecho de musgo y plumón.
She hardly dared to put upon the little arm, smaller than her own little finger, a little shift made of the fine white skin of the inside of an eggshell.
Apenas se atrevía a ponerle en el bracito, más pequeño que su propio meñique, una pequeña camisa hecha de la fina piel blanca del interior de una cáscara de huevo.
The boots of the little one had soles cut out of the inside husks of the corn; a poppy leaf made her an ample bonnet.
Las botitas de la pequeña tenían suelas cortadas de las cáscaras interiores del maíz; una hoja de amapola le hacía las veces de amplio sombrero.
The spider's web which the dew whitens, and the wind winds up in balls, seemed too coarse too weave her sheets with, and the cup of an acorn was big enough for Piccolissima.
La telaraña que el rocío blanquea y el viento enrolla en bolas parecía demasiado gruesa para tejer sus sábanas, y la cúpula de una bellota era suficientemente grande para Piccolissima.
Her parents obtained all her wardrobe, and all the small furniture for her use from those thousands of skilful laborers, so adroit, and yet of whom we think so little, who hide themselves in all the walls, in the leaves of the trees turned up like horns, under the bark of the trees; in short, that are found in all the corners and crevices of creation.
Sus padres obtuvieron todo su guardarropa y todos los pequeños muebles para su uso de esos miles de hábiles trabajadores, tan diestros y de quienes tan poco pensamos, que se esconden en todas las paredes, en las hojas de los árboles enrolladas como cuernos, bajo la corteza de los árboles; en resumen, que se encuentran en todos los rincones y grietas de la creación.
Mr. and Mrs. Tom Thumb were not people who could be astonished.
El señor y la señora Pulgarcito no eran personas que pudieran asombrarse.
Vocabulary
- se
- Reflexive pronoun used with reflexive verbs
- aferraba
- She clung or held tightly to something
- nociones
- Notions or basic ideas about something
- anticuadas
- Outdated or old-fashioned ideas or practices
- podía
- Past tense of poder; she was able to
- suponer
- To suppose, assume, or imagine something
- posible
- Adjective meaning capable of happening or existing
- pequeña
- Feminine adjective meaning small or little one
- pudiera
- Subjunctive past of poder; might be able to
- dormir
- To sleep; infinitive of the verb sleep
- sin
- Preposition meaning 'without'
- ser
- To be; permanent or inherent states of being
- mecida
- Rocked or swayed gently, as in a cradle
- Lo
- Neuter article used before adjectives as noun
- dificultades
- Difficulties or challenges encountered in a situation
- causó
- Caused or brought about a result or problem
- madrecita
- Affectionate diminutive of mother; dear little mother
- dada
- Given or considering, used in prepositional phrases
- extrema
- Extreme or very great degree of something
- pequeñez
- Smallness or the quality of being very tiny
- delicadeza
- Delicacy or fragility of something or someone
- miembros
- Members or limbs of a body or group
- recién
- Recently or just now, used before past participles
- nacida
- Newborn or recently born feminine individual
- muñequita
- Tiny little doll; affectionate diminutive of doll
- fue
- Past tense of ser or ir; was or went
- imposibilidad
- Impossibility; the state of being impossible
- envolverla
- To wrap her up in cloth or material
- vestirla
- To dress her or put clothes on her
- Así
- Adverb meaning 'thus,' 'so,' or 'in this way'
- vio
- Past tense of ver; she saw or found herself
- obligada
- Obliged or forced to do something
- resignarse
- To resign oneself or accept an unavoidable situation
- hacer
- To do or make something; common Spanish verb
- hacen
- Third person plural of hacer; they do or make
- pájaros
- Birds; small flying animals with feathers
- criar
- To raise or nurture a young creature or child
- lecho
- Bed or resting place, often poetic or formal
- musgo
- Moss; soft green plant growing on surfaces
- plumón
- Down feathers; soft fine feathers for warmth
- Apenas
- Hardly or scarcely; just barely doing something
- atrevía
- Dared or ventured to do something cautiously
- ponerle
- To put on her; place something on someone
- bracito
- Tiny little arm; affectionate diminutive of arm
- pequeño
- Small or little; masculine singular adjective
- propio
- Own; belonging to oneself; adjective of possession
- meñique
- Pinky finger; the smallest finger of the hand
- camisa
- Shirt or blouse worn as a garment
- hecha
- Made or crafted from a particular material
- fina
- Fine, thin, or delicate in texture or quality
- piel
- Skin or leather; outer covering of a body
- blanca
- White; feminine adjective describing color white
- interior
- Interior or inner part of something
- cáscara
- Shell, peel, or outer hard covering of something
- huevo
- Egg; oval object laid by birds or reptiles
- botitas
- Tiny little boots; diminutive of boots
- tenían
- They had; imperfect past tense of tener
- suelas
- Soles of shoes or boots
- cortadas
- Cut or trimmed; past participle of cortar
- cáscaras
- Shells or peels; plural of cáscara
- interiores
- Inner parts or interiors; plural adjective
- maíz
- Corn or maize; cereal grain plant
- hoja
- Leaf of a plant or a sheet of paper
- amapola
- Poppy; a flowering plant with bright petals
- hacía
- Made or did; imperfect past tense of hacer
- veces
- Times; used in expressions like 'a veces' (sometimes)
- amplio
- Ample, wide, or spacious; roomy adjective
- sombrero
- Hat; a head covering with a brim
- telaraña
- Spiderweb; the silken net spun by spiders
- rocío
- Dew; small water droplets on surfaces in morning
- blanquea
- Whitens or bleaches something to a lighter color
- viento
- Wind; moving air or a breeze
- enrolla
- Rolls or coils something into a rounded shape
- bolas
- Balls or round-shaped objects
- parecía
- Seemed or appeared; imperfect of parecer
- demasiado
- Too much or excessively; adverb of excess
- gruesa
- Thick or coarse; feminine adjective of thickness
- tejer
- To weave or knit fabric or thread together
- sábanas
- Bed sheets used to cover a sleeping surface
- cúpula
- Dome or cupola; a rounded roof structure
- bellota
- Acorn; the nut produced by an oak tree
- era
- Was; imperfect past tense of ser
- suficientemente
- Sufficiently or adequately; enough to meet needs
- grande
- Large or big; adjective describing great size
- padres
- Parents; father and mother together
- obtuvieron
- They obtained or acquired something for themselves
- todo
- All or everything; adjective meaning entire
- guardarropa
- Wardrobe or closet for storing clothing
- todos
- All or every one; masculine plural of todo
- pequeños
- Small or little; masculine plural adjective
- muebles
- Furniture; movable objects used in a home
- uso
- Use or usage; the act of using something
- esos
- Those; masculine plural demonstrative adjective
- miles
- Thousands; plural of mile or thousand
- hábiles
- Skilled or capable; adjective describing ability
- trabajadores
- Workers or laborers who perform tasks or jobs
- tan
- So or as; adverb used in comparisons
- diestros
- Skilled or dexterous; highly capable workers
- quienes
- Who; relative pronoun referring to people
- poco
- Little or few; small amount of something
- pensamos
- We think; first person plural of pensar
- esconden
- They hide or conceal themselves somewhere
- todas
- All; feminine plural adjective meaning every one
- paredes
- Walls; vertical surfaces forming rooms or buildings
- hojas
- Leaves of plants or sheets of paper
- árboles
- Trees; tall woody plants with branches and leaves
- enrolladas
- Rolled up or coiled; past participle of enrollar
- cuernos
- Horns; hard pointed growths on animals' heads
- bajo
- Under or below; preposition indicating lower position
- corteza
- Bark of a tree or outer crust of something
- resumen
- Summary or in short; brief account of something
- encuentran
- They find or encounter something somewhere
- rincones
- Corners or nooks; small hidden spaces in rooms
- grietas
- Cracks or crevices in surfaces or walls
- creación
- Creation; the act of making something or all existence
- señor
- Mister or sir; respectful title for a man
- señora
- Mrs. or ma'am; respectful title for a woman
- eran
- Were; third person plural imperfect of ser
- personas
- People or persons; human individuals
- pudieran
- Could or might; past subjunctive of poder
- asombrarse
- To be amazed or astonished by something
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