The Hound of the Baskervilles — Page 7
He had risen and paced the room as he spoke.
Si era alzato e aveva camminato avanti e indietro per la stanza mentre parlava.
Now he halted in the recess of the window.
Ora si era fermato nel vano della finestra.
There was such a ring of conviction in his voice that I glanced up in surprise.
C'era una tale nota di convinzione nella sua voce che alzai lo sguardo sorpreso.
"My dear fellow, how can you possibly be so sure of that?"
«Mio caro amico, come puoi essere così sicuro di questo?»
"For the very simple reason that I see the dog himself on our very door-step, and there is the ring of its owner.
«Per la semplicissima ragione che vedo il cane stesso sul nostro stesso gradino, e lì c'è il campanello del suo padrone.
Don't move, I beg you, Watson.
Non si muova, la prego, Watson.
He is a professional brother of yours, and your presence may be of assistance to me.
È un suo collega di professione, e la sua presenza potrebbe essermi di aiuto.
Now is the dramatic moment of fate, Watson, when you hear a step upon the stair which is walking into your life, and you know not whether for good or ill.
Questo è il momento drammatico del destino, Watson, quando si sente un passo sulle scale che sta per entrare nella sua vita, e non sa se per bene o per male.
What does Dr. James Mortimer, the man of science, ask of Sherlock Holmes, the specialist in crime?
Cosa chiede il dottor James Mortimer, l'uomo di scienza, a Sherlock Holmes, lo specialista in crimini?
Come in!"
Avanti!»
The appearance of our visitor was a surprise to me, since I had expected a typical country practitioner.
L'aspetto del nostro visitatore mi sorprese, poiché mi aspettavo un tipico medico di campagna.
He was a very tall, thin man, with a long nose like a beak, which jutted out between two keen, grey eyes, set closely together and sparkling brightly from behind a pair of gold-rimmed glasses.
Era un uomo molto alto e magro, con un lungo naso simile a un becco, che sporgeva tra due occhi acuti e grigi, ravvicinati e brillanti dietro un paio di occhiali con montatura dorata.
He was clad in a professional but rather slovenly fashion, for his frock-coat was dingy and his trousers frayed.
Era vestito in modo professionale ma piuttosto trascurato, poiché il suo redingote era sudicio e i pantaloni sfilacciati.
Though young, his long back was already bowed, and he walked with a forward thrust of his head and a general air of peering benevolence.
Sebbene giovane, la sua schiena allungata era già curva, e camminava con la testa protesa in avanti e un'aria generale di benevola attenzione scrutatrice.
Vocabulary
- Si
- Reflexive pronoun meaning 'himself', 'herself', 'itself'
- era
- Third person singular imperfect of 'essere'; 'was'
- alzato
- Past participle of 'alzarsi'; stood up, risen
- aveva
- Third person singular imperfect of 'avere'; 'had'
- camminato
- Past participle of 'camminare'; walked
- avanti
- Forward, ahead; also used as 'come in'
- indietro
- Backward, behind, back
- per
- Preposition meaning 'for', 'through', 'in order to'
- stanza
- Room in a house or building
- mentre
- Conjunction meaning 'while', 'whereas'
- parlava
- Third person singular imperfect of 'parlare'; was speaking
- Ora
- Now; at this moment in time
- fermato
- Past participle of 'fermarsi'; stopped, halted
- vano
- Recess or opening, as in a window frame
- finestra
- Window in a wall or building
- C'
- Contraction of 'ci'; used in 'c'è' meaning 'there is'
- tale
- Such, so great; referring to a particular quality
- nota
- Note, tone; a distinguishable quality in voice or sound
- convinzione
- Conviction, strong belief or certainty
- voce
- Voice; the sound produced when speaking or singing
- alzai
- First person singular passato remoto of 'alzare'; I raised
- sguardo
- Gaze, look; the act or direction of one's eyes
- sorpreso
- Surprised, astonished, caught off guard
- caro
- Dear, beloved; also expensive
- amico
- Friend, close acquaintance
- come
- How, as, like; used in questions and comparisons
- puoi
- Second person singular present of 'potere'; you can
- essere
- To be; fundamental Italian auxiliary and linking verb
- così
- So, thus, in this way
- sicuro
- Sure, certain, safe, confident
- questo
- Demonstrative pronoun/adjective meaning 'this'
- semplicissima
- Superlative of 'semplice'; very simplest, most straightforward
- ragione
- Reason, cause; also 'right' as in being correct
- vedo
- First person singular present of 'vedere'; I see
- cane
- Dog; domestic canine animal
- stesso
- Same, himself, itself; used for emphasis or identity
- nostro
- Possessive adjective meaning 'our'
- gradino
- Step, stair; one level of a staircase or doorstep
- lì
- There; indicating a place away from the speaker
- è
- Third person singular present of 'essere'; is
- campanello
- Doorbell or small bell used to signal arrival
- padrone
- Owner, master, landlord of something or someone
- muova
- Third person singular present subjunctive of 'muovere'; move
- prego
- Please; you're welcome; I beg you
- collega
- Colleague, fellow professional or coworker
- professione
- Profession, occupation, career field
- presenza
- Presence; being present in a place or situation
- potrebbe
- Third person singular conditional of 'potere'; could, might
- essermi
- Infinitive 'essere' + 'mi'; to be to me, to prove useful
- aiuto
- Help, assistance; aid offered in a difficult situation
- momento
- Moment, instant; a brief point in time
- drammatico
- Dramatic, tense; full of emotion or significance
- destino
- Destiny, fate; one's predetermined or inevitable future
- quando
- When; at the time that something occurs
- sente
- Third person singular present of 'sentire'; hears, feels
- passo
- Step, footstep; the sound or act of walking
- scale
- Stairs, staircase; steps leading between floors
- sta
- Third person singular present of 'stare'; is, stands
- entrare
- To enter, to come or go inside a place
- vita
- Life; existence, or the course of one's living
- sa
- Third person singular present of 'sapere'; knows
- se
- Conjunction meaning 'if', 'whether'
- bene
- Well, good; in a positive or satisfactory way
- male
- Badly, evil, harm; the opposite of good or well
- Cosa
- What, thing; used to ask questions or name objects
- chiede
- Third person singular present of 'chiedere'; asks, requests
- dottor
- Abbreviated title 'dottore'; doctor, used before a name
- uomo
- Man; an adult male human being
- scienza
- Science; systematic study of the natural world
- specialista
- Specialist, expert in a particular field or subject
- crimini
- Plural of 'crimine'; crimes, criminal acts
- Avanti
- Come in, forward; used to invite someone to enter
- aspetto
- Appearance, aspect; the way someone or something looks
- visitatore
- Visitor, caller; someone who comes to see another
- sorprese
- Third person singular passato remoto of 'sorprendere'; surprised
- poiché
- Since, because, as; introduces a causal clause
- aspettavo
- First person singular imperfect of 'aspettare'; I was expecting
- tipico
- Typical, characteristic, representative of a type
- medico
- Doctor, physician; medical professional
- campagna
- Countryside, rural area; land outside the city
- Era
- Third person singular imperfect of 'essere'; was
- molto
- Very, much, a lot; indicates high degree or quantity
- alto
- Tall, high; of great height or elevation
- magro
- Thin, lean, slim; lacking excess body weight
- lungo
- Long; extended in length or duration
- naso
- Nose; the facial organ used for smelling and breathing
- simile
- Similar, like, resembling something else
- becco
- Beak, bill; the pointed mouth part of a bird
- sporgeva
- Third person singular imperfect of 'sporgere'; protruded, stuck out
- tra
- Preposition meaning 'between', 'among', 'in'
- occhi
- Eyes; the organs of sight (plural of 'occhio')
- acuti
- Sharp, keen, acute; penetrating in perception or vision
- grigi
- Gray; of a color between black and white (plural)
- ravvicinati
- Close-set, placed near together; describing eyes set close
- brillanti
- Brilliant, bright, sparkling; shining with intelligence or light
- dietro
- Behind, after, at the back of something
- paio
- Pair, couple; two matching or related items
- occhiali
- Glasses, spectacles; optical lenses worn on the face
- montatura
- Frame, setting; the structure holding spectacle lenses
- dorata
- Golden, gilded; having the color or coating of gold
- vestito
- Dressed; also noun meaning 'dress' or 'suit'
- modo
- Way, manner, mode; how something is done
- professionale
- Professional; relating to or befitting a profession
- piuttosto
- Rather, quite, somewhat; to a noticeable degree
- trascurato
- Neglected, untidy, careless about one's appearance
- redingote
- Frock coat; a long fitted coat worn by men
- sudicio
- Dirty, filthy, grimy; not clean or well-kept
- pantaloni
- Trousers, pants; garment covering the legs
- sfilacciati
- Frayed, unraveled; having loose threads at the edges
- Sebbene
- Although, even though; introduces a concessive clause
- giovane
- Young; of relatively few years in age
- schiena
- Back; the posterior side of the human torso
- allungata
- Elongated, stretched out; extended in length
- già
- Already; by this or that time, previously
- curva
- Curved, bent; not straight, bowing forward
- camminava
- Third person singular imperfect of 'camminare'; was walking
- testa
- Head; the upper part of the human body
- protesa
- Extended, thrust forward; stretched out in a direction
- aria
- Air, manner, appearance; general impression given off
- generale
- General, overall; applying broadly or in most cases
- benevola
- Benevolent, kindly, well-meaning; showing goodwill
- attenzione
- Attention, care; the act of closely watching or noticing
- scrutatrice
- Scrutinizing, examining closely; searching and analytical
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