Piccolissima — Page 2
On the mother's side, her lineage was no less distinguished.
Dal lato materno, la sua stirpe non era meno illustre.
Mignonette Littlepin (this was the family name of Madam Tom Thumb) was the great granddaughter of the wonderful Princess, who once lodged in a spectacle case, out of which she came so splendidly attired that the brilliancy of her little person illuminated all surrounding objects.
Mignonette Littlepin (questo era il cognome della signora Pollicina) era la bisnipote della meravigliosa Principessa, che una volta alloggiò in un astuccio da occhiali, dal quale uscì così splendidamente abbigliata che lo splendore della sua minuta persona illuminava tutti gli oggetti circostanti.
A trustworthy biographer tells us that nothing occurred in the history of Mr. and Mrs. Tom Thumb to disgrace their illustrious parentage, and they were considered none the less good citizens because they were rather smaller than other people.
Un biografo affidabile ci racconta che nulla accadde nella storia del signor e della signora Pollicina che disonoresse la loro illustre discendenza, e che essi erano considerati buoni cittadini non di meno perché erano alquanto più piccoli degli altri.
In the mean while, however, our humble couple became suddenly celebrated by the birth of our heroine; this small creature was so delicate, so exquisite, so pretty, and so lively and full of spirit, that from the age of two years she became the object of general admiration.
Nel frattempo, tuttavia, la nostra umile coppia divenne improvvisamente celebre per la nascita della nostra eroina; questa piccola creatura era così delicata, così squisita, così graziosa, e così vivace e piena di spirito, che dall'età di due anni divenne oggetto di ammirazione generale.
She was not more than one inch in height, and her mother, who had prepared the cradle and baby linen for a child of the usual size, was puzzled to know what to do.
Non misurava più di un pollice di altezza, e sua madre, che aveva preparato la culla e il corredino per un bambino di dimensioni normali, non sapeva cosa fare.
Finally, the half of a cocoanut shell, lined, and furnished with soft cushions of thistle down, made a good bed for the little wonder; and the nursery maid, wife of a neighboring clockmaker, and a person of ingenuity, conceived the admirable idea of suspending the cocoanut cradle from the pendulum of a great clock, in order that the infant might be rocked all the time.
Alla fine, la metà di un guscio di noce di cocco, foderata e arredata con morbidi cuscini di lanugine di cardo, fece un ottimo letto per la piccola meraviglia; e la bambinaia, moglie di un vicino orologiaio e persona di grande ingegno, concepì l'ammirevole idea di appendere la culla di noce di cocco al pendolo di un grande orologio, affinché la piccola potesse essere cullata in continuazione.
Madam Tom Thumb was enchanted with the invention.
La signora Pollicina era incantata dall'invenzione.
Vocabulary
- lato
- Side, aspect, or part of something
- materno
- Relating to the mother or maternal side
- stirpe
- Lineage, bloodline, or ancestral descent
- meno
- Less, fewer; used in comparisons
- illustre
- Illustrious, distinguished, or renowned
- cognome
- Surname or family name of a person
- signora
- Mrs., madam; polite title for a woman
- bisnipote
- Great-grandchild or great-grandniece/nephew
- meravigliosa
- Wonderful, marvellous, extraordinary in quality
- Principessa
- Princess; female member of royal family
- volta
- Time, occasion; 'una volta' means 'once'
- alloggiò
- Lodged, stayed, or was accommodated somewhere
- astuccio
- Case or small box for storing objects
- occhiali
- Eyeglasses, spectacles worn to correct vision
- uscì
- Came out, exited, or emerged from a place
- così
- So, thus, in this way
- splendidamente
- Splendidly, magnificently, in a brilliant manner
- abbigliata
- Dressed, clothed, attired in a certain way
- splendore
- Splendour, brilliance, radiant beauty or light
- minuta
- Tiny, petite, small in stature or build
- persona
- Person, individual human being
- illuminava
- Illuminated, lit up, shed light upon something
- tutti
- All, every, everyone; totality of people or things
- oggetti
- Objects, things, items of a material nature
- circostanti
- Surrounding, nearby, in the immediate vicinity
- biografo
- Biographer; one who writes another's life story
- affidabile
- Reliable, trustworthy, dependable in character
- racconta
- Tells, narrates, recounts a story or fact
- nulla
- Nothing, not anything; absence of all things
- accadde
- Happened, occurred, took place at a moment
- storia
- Story, history, or narrative account of events
- signor
- Mr., sir; polite title for a man
- disonoresse
- Would dishonour, disgrace, or bring shame upon
- discendenza
- Descent, lineage, or the offspring of a family
- considerati
- Considered, regarded, viewed as something by others
- cittadini
- Citizens, residents belonging to a town or country
- alquanto
- Rather, somewhat, considerably, to a certain degree
- piccoli
- Small, little; masculine plural adjective of size
- frattempo
- Meantime, meanwhile; the intervening period of time
- tuttavia
- Nevertheless, however, yet; concessive conjunction
- umile
- Humble, modest, of low social standing
- coppia
- Couple, pair; two people in a relationship
- divenne
- Became; third person singular past tense of 'diventare'
- improvvisamente
- Suddenly, unexpectedly, without prior warning
- celebre
- Famous, celebrated, widely known and acclaimed
- nascita
- Birth; the moment or event of being born
- eroina
- Heroine; female protagonist or celebrated brave woman
- piccola
- Small, little; feminine singular adjective of size
- creatura
- Creature, being, a living or created entity
- delicata
- Delicate, fragile, dainty, or requiring gentle care
- squisita
- Exquisite, exceptionally refined, of highest quality
- graziosa
- Pretty, graceful, charming in appearance or manner
- vivace
- Lively, vivacious, full of energy and spirit
- piena
- Full; feminine adjective indicating completeness or abundance
- spirito
- Spirit, wit, liveliness, inner vitality or soul
- età
- Age; the number of years a person has lived
- anni
- Years; plural of 'anno', unit of time
- oggetto
- Object, subject; a thing or topic of focus
- ammirazione
- Admiration; feeling of wonder and high regard
- generale
- General, widespread, common to all or most
- misurava
- Measured, was measuring a length or quantity
- pollice
- Thumb; also an inch as unit of measurement
- altezza
- Height; vertical measurement of a person or thing
- madre
- Mother; female parent of a child
- preparato
- Prepared, made ready, arranged in advance
- culla
- Cradle; small rocking bed for a baby
- corredino
- Layette; small set of clothing and items for baby
- bambino
- Baby, child; a young human being
- dimensioni
- Dimensions, size, measurements of an object
- normali
- Normal, standard, ordinary in size or kind
- sapeva
- Knew, was aware of; imperfect of 'sapere'
- fine
- End, conclusion; final point of something
- metà
- Half; one of two equal parts of something
- guscio
- Shell; hard outer covering of a nut or egg
- noce
- Walnut; edible nut with hard brown shell
- cocco
- Coconut; tropical fruit with hard fibrous shell
- foderata
- Lined, covered on the inside with a material
- arredata
- Furnished, decorated with furniture or accessories
- morbidi
- Soft, gentle, tender to the touch
- cuscini
- Cushions or pillows used for comfort and support
- lanugine
- Fluff, down, soft fine fibres from a plant
- cardo
- Thistle; prickly plant with soft silky seed fibres
- fece
- Made, did; third person singular past of 'fare'
- ottimo
- Excellent, very good, of the highest quality
- letto
- Bed; furniture used for sleeping or resting
- meraviglia
- Marvel, wonder, amazement at something extraordinary
- bambinaia
- Nanny, nursemaid; woman who cares for children
- moglie
- Wife; a married woman in relation to her husband
- vicino
- Neighbor; person living nearby, or adjective 'close'
- orologiaio
- Watchmaker, clockmaker; craftsman who repairs timepieces
- ingegno
- Ingenuity, wit, cleverness, inventive mental ability
- concepì
- Conceived, devised, thought up an idea or plan
- ammirevole
- Admirable, praiseworthy, worthy of high respect
- idea
- Idea, thought, concept formed in the mind
- appendere
- To hang, suspend something from a fixed point
- pendolo
- Pendulum; swinging weight that regulates a clock
- orologio
- Clock or watch; instrument for measuring time
- affinché
- So that, in order that; conjunction of purpose
- potesse
- Could, might; imperfect subjunctive of 'potere'
- cullata
- Rocked, cradled, gently swung back and forth
- continuazione
- Continuation; the act of carrying something on
- incantata
- Enchanted, delighted, charmed by something wonderful
- invenzione
- Invention; a newly created device or idea
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