The Picture of Dorian Gray — Page 4

English → It CHAPTER I. Level 7/10

Why, my dear Basil, he is a Narcissus, and you—well, of course you have an intellectual expression and all that.

Ma, mio caro Basil, lui è un Narciso, e tu—be', certo hai un'espressione intellettuale e tutto il resto.

But beauty, real beauty, ends where an intellectual expression begins.

Ma la bellezza, la vera bellezza, finisce là dove comincia un'espressione intellettuale.

Intellect is in itself a mode of exaggeration, and destroys the harmony of any face.

L'intelletto è di per sé una forma di esagerazione, e distrugge l'armonia di qualsiasi viso.

The moment one sits down to think, one becomes all nose, or all forehead, or something horrid.

Nel momento in cui ci si siede a pensare, si diventa tutto naso, o tutto fronte, o qualcosa di orribile.

Look at the successful men in any of the learned professions.

Guarda gli uomini di successo in qualsiasi professione intellettuale.

How perfectly hideous they are!

Come sono perfettamente orribili!

Except, of course, in the Church.

Eccetto, naturalmente, nella Chiesa.

But then in the Church they don't think.

Ma d'altronde nella Chiesa non pensano.

A bishop keeps on saying at the age of eighty what he was told to say when he was a boy of eighteen, and as a natural consequence he always looks absolutely delightful.

Un vescovo continua a dire all'età di ottant'anni ciò che gli è stato detto di dire quando era un ragazzo di diciott'anni, e come naturale conseguenza ha sempre un aspetto assolutamente delizioso.

Your mysterious young friend, whose name you have never told me, but whose picture really fascinates me, never thinks.

Il tuo misterioso giovane amico, di cui non mi hai mai detto il nome, ma il cui ritratto mi affascina davvero, non pensa mai.

I feel quite sure of that.

Ne sono assolutamente certo.

He is some brainless beautiful creature who should be always here in winter when we have no flowers to look at, and always here in summer when we want something to chill our intelligence.

È una bella creatura senza cervello che dovrebbe essere sempre qui in inverno quando non abbiamo fiori da guardare, e sempre qui in estate quando vogliamo qualcosa che raffreddi la nostra intelligenza.

Don't flatter yourself, Basil: you are not in the least like him."

Non illuderti, Basil: non gli assomigli affatto."

"You don't understand me, Harry," answered the artist.

«Non mi capisci, Harry,» rispose l'artista.

"Of course I am not like him.

«Certo che non gli assomiglio.

I know that perfectly well.

Lo so perfettamente bene.

Indeed, I should be sorry to look like him.

Anzi, mi dispiacerebbe assomigliargli.

You shrug your shoulders?

Stringi le spalle?

I am telling you the truth.

Ti sto dicendo la verità.

Vocabulary

Ma: ma — Conjunction meaning 'but', introducing contrast.
mio: mio — Possessive adjective meaning 'my'.
caro: caro — Adjective meaning 'dear' or 'expensive'.
lui: lui — Third-person singular pronoun meaning 'he' or 'him'.
è: è — Third-person singular of 'essere', meaning 'is'.
un: un — Indefinite article meaning 'a' or 'an'.
Narciso: narʧizo — Narcissus; mythological figure obsessed with himself.
e: e — Conjunction meaning 'and'.
tu: tu — Second-person singular pronoun meaning 'you'.
be': be — Colloquial interjection meaning 'well' or 'so'.
certo: ʧerto — Adjective or adverb meaning 'certain' or 'certainly'.
hai: ai — Second-person singular of 'avere', meaning 'you have'.
un': un — Indefinite article before feminine vowel-initial nouns.
espressione: espressjone — Noun meaning 'expression', referring to facial or verbal form.
intellettuale: intellettwale — Adjective meaning 'intellectual', relating to the intellect.
tutto: tutto — Adjective or pronoun meaning 'all' or 'everything'.
il: il — Definite article meaning 'the' for masculine singular.
resto: resto — Noun meaning 'the rest' or 'remainder'.
la: la — Definite article meaning 'the' for feminine singular.
bellezza: belletsa — Noun meaning 'beauty', referring to aesthetic quality.
vera: vera — Adjective meaning 'true' or 'real'.
finisce: finiʃʃe — Third-person singular of 'finire', meaning 'it ends'.
là: la — Adverb meaning 'there', indicating a distant location.
dove: dove — Adverb meaning 'where', used in relative clauses.
comincia: kominʧa — Third-person singular of 'cominciare', meaning 'it begins'.
L': l — Elided definite article 'the' before vowel-initial nouns.
intelletto: intelletto — Noun meaning 'intellect' or 'reason'.
di: di — Preposition meaning 'of' or 'from'.
per: per — Preposition meaning 'for', 'by', or 'through'.
sé: se — Reflexive pronoun meaning 'itself' or 'oneself'.
una: una — Indefinite article meaning 'a' for feminine nouns.
forma: forma — Noun meaning 'form', 'shape', or 'type'.
esagerazione: ezadʒeratsjone — Noun meaning 'exaggeration', overstating beyond normal limits.
distrugge: distruddʒe — Third-person singular of 'distruggere', meaning 'it destroys'.
l': l — Elided definite article 'the' before vowel sounds.
armonia: armonja — Noun meaning 'harmony', balance or pleasing arrangement.
qualsiasi: kwalsjaːzi — Adjective meaning 'any' or 'whatever', indicating no restriction.
viso: vizo — Noun meaning 'face', the front part of the head.
Nel: nel — Contraction of 'in' + 'il', meaning 'in the'.
momento: momento — Noun meaning 'moment' or 'instant in time'.
in: in — Preposition meaning 'in' or 'into'.
cui: kwi — Relative pronoun meaning 'which' or 'whom'.
ci: ʧi — Reflexive or locative pronoun meaning 'ourselves' or 'there'.
si: si — Reflexive pronoun used for impersonal or reflexive constructions.
siede: sjɛde — Third-person singular of 'sedersi', meaning 'one sits'.
a: a — Preposition meaning 'at', 'to', or 'in'.
pensare: pensare — Verb infinitive meaning 'to think'.
diventa: diventa — Third-person singular of 'diventare', meaning 'becomes'.
naso: nazo — Noun meaning 'nose', the facial organ of smell.
o: o — Conjunction meaning 'or', presenting an alternative.
fronte: fronte — Noun meaning 'forehead', upper part of the face.
qualcosa: kwalkoza — Pronoun meaning 'something', an unspecified thing.
orribile: oribile — Adjective meaning 'horrible' or 'dreadful'.
Guarda: gwarda — Imperative of 'guardare', meaning 'look' or 'look at'.
gli: ʎi — Definite article meaning 'the' for masculine plural nouns.
uomini: wɔmini — Noun plural meaning 'men', adult male human beings.
successo: suʧʧesso — Noun meaning 'success', achievement of goals or fame.
professione: professjone — Noun meaning 'profession' or 'occupation'.
Come: kome — Adverb meaning 'how' or 'as', used in exclamations.
sono: sono — Third-person plural of 'essere', meaning 'they are'.
perfettamente: perfettamente — Adverb meaning 'perfectly', in a complete or flawless manner.
Eccetto: eʧʧetto — Preposition meaning 'except' or 'apart from'.
naturalmente: naturalmente — Adverb meaning 'naturally' or 'of course'.
nella: nella — Contraction of 'in' + 'la', meaning 'in the'.
Chiesa: kjeza — Noun meaning 'Church', religious institution or building.
d': d — Elided form of preposition 'di', meaning 'of'.
altronde: altronde — Used in 'd'altronde', meaning 'on the other hand'.
non: non — Adverb of negation meaning 'not'.
pensano: pensano — Third-person plural of 'pensare', meaning 'they think'.
Un: un — Indefinite article meaning 'a' for masculine singular nouns.
vescovo: veʃkovo — Noun meaning 'bishop', a senior Christian Church official.
continua: kontinua — Third-person singular of 'continuare', meaning 'continues'.
dire: dire — Verb infinitive meaning 'to say' or 'to tell'.
all': all — Contraction of 'a' + 'la/l'', meaning 'at the'.
età: eta — Noun meaning 'age', number of years one has lived.
ottant': ottant — Cardinal number 'eighty', elided before vowel-initial words.
anni: anni — Noun plural meaning 'years', units of time measurement.
ciò: ʧo — Demonstrative pronoun meaning 'that' or 'what'.
che: ke — Conjunction or pronoun meaning 'that', 'which', or 'who'.
stato: stato — Past participle of 'essere', meaning 'been'; also 'state'.
detto: detto — Past participle of 'dire', meaning 'said'.
quando: kwando — Conjunction or adverb meaning 'when'.
era: era — Third-person singular imperfect of 'essere', meaning 'was'.
ragazzo: ragattso — Noun meaning 'boy' or 'young man'.
diciott': diʧott — Cardinal number 'eighteen', elided before vowel sounds.
come: kome — Conjunction or adverb meaning 'as' or 'how'.
naturale: Adjective meaning 'natural', existing in or by nature.
conseguenza: konsegwentsa — Noun meaning 'consequence' or 'result'.
ha: a — Third-person singular of 'avere', meaning 'he/she has'.
sempre: sempre — Adverb meaning 'always', at all times.
aspetto: aspetto — Noun meaning 'appearance' or 'aspect'; also 'I wait'.
assolutamente: assolutamente — Adverb meaning 'absolutely', in a complete or total manner.
delizioso: delittsjoso — Adjective meaning 'delightful' or 'delicious'.
Il: il — Definite article meaning 'the' for masculine singular nouns.
tuo: tuo — Possessive adjective meaning 'your' (singular informal).
misterioso: misterjozo — Adjective meaning 'mysterious', full of mystery or secrecy.
giovane: dʒovane — Adjective or noun meaning 'young' or 'young person'.
amico: amiko — Noun meaning 'friend', a male companion.
mi: mi — First-person singular clitic pronoun meaning 'me' or 'to me'.
mai: mai — Adverb meaning 'never' or 'ever', depending on context.
nome: nome — Noun meaning 'name', the word used to identify someone.
ma: ma — Conjunction meaning 'but', introducing a contrast.
ritratto: ritratto — Noun meaning 'portrait', a painted or photographed likeness.
affascina: affaʃʃina — Third-person singular of 'affascinare', meaning 'fascinates'.
davvero: davvero — Adverb meaning 'really' or 'truly'.
pensa: pensa — Third-person singular of 'pensare', meaning 'he/she thinks'.
Ne: ne — Partitive or clitic pronoun meaning 'of it' or 'some'.
È: è — Third-person singular of 'essere', meaning 'is'.
bella: bella — Adjective meaning 'beautiful' or 'lovely', feminine form.
creatura: kreattura — Noun meaning 'creature' or 'being'.
senza: sentsa — Preposition meaning 'without'.
cervello: ʧervello — Noun meaning 'brain' or 'mind'.
dovrebbe: dovrebbe — Conditional of 'dovere', meaning 'he/she should'.
essere: essere — Infinitive verb meaning 'to be'.
qui: kwi — Adverb meaning 'here', indicating a nearby location.
inverno: inverno — Noun meaning 'winter', the coldest season of the year.
abbiamo: abbjamo — First-person plural of 'avere', meaning 'we have'.
fiori: fjori — Noun plural meaning 'flowers'.
da: da — Preposition meaning 'from', 'by', or 'since'.
guardare: gwardare — Verb infinitive meaning 'to look at' or 'to watch'.
estate: estate — Noun meaning 'summer', the warmest season of the year.
vogliamo: voʎʎamo — First-person plural of 'volere', meaning 'we want'.
raffreddi: raffreddi — Subjunctive of 'raffreddare', meaning 'cools' or 'chills'.
nostra: nostra — Possessive adjective meaning 'our', feminine singular form.
intelligenza: intellidʒentsa — Noun meaning 'intelligence', cognitive ability or mental acuity.
Non: non — Adverb of negation meaning 'not'.
illuderti: illuderti — Reflexive infinitive meaning 'to delude yourself' or 'deceive yourself'.
assomigli: assomiʎʎi — Second-person singular of 'assomigliare', meaning 'you resemble'.
affatto: affatto — Adverb meaning 'at all', used in negative sentences.
capisci: kapiʃʃi — Second-person singular of 'capire', meaning 'you understand'.
rispose: rispose — Third-person singular past of 'rispondere', meaning 'replied'.
artista: artista — Noun meaning 'artist', a person who creates art.
Certo: ʧerto — Adverb meaning 'certainly' or 'of course'.
assomiglio: assomiʎʎo — First-person singular of 'assomigliare', meaning 'I resemble'.
Lo: lo — Direct object pronoun meaning 'it' or 'him'.
so: so — First-person singular of 'sapere', meaning 'I know'.
bene: bene — Adverb meaning 'well'; noun meaning 'good'.
Anzi: antsi — Adverb meaning 'in fact', 'rather', or 'on the contrary'.
dispiacerebbe: dispjaʧerebbe — Conditional of 'dispiacere', meaning 'it would displease me'.
assomigliargli: assomiʎʎarʎi — Infinitive 'to resemble him', with clitic pronoun attached.
Stringi: stringi — Second-person singular imperative of 'stringere', meaning 'shrug'.
le: le — Definite article or pronoun meaning 'the' (f. pl.) or 'her'.
spalle: spalle — Noun plural meaning 'shoulders', upper body joints.
Ti: ti — Second-person singular clitic pronoun meaning 'you' or 'to you'.
sto: sto — First-person singular of 'stare', meaning 'I am' (progressive).
dicendo: diʧendo — Gerund of 'dire', meaning 'saying', used in progressive tenses.
verità: verita — Noun meaning 'truth', a statement corresponding to reality.

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