The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck — Page 3
I would teach it to mind its own business!"
Ich würde es lehren, sich um seine eigenen Angelegenheiten zu kümmern!"
"But as to a nest--there is no difficulty: I have a sackful of feathers in my wood-shed.
„Was aber ein Nest betrifft – da gibt es keine Schwierigkeit: Ich habe einen Sack voll Federn in meinem Holzschuppen.
No, my dear madam, you will be in nobody's way.
Nein, meine liebe Dame, Sie werden niemandem im Wege sein.
You may sit there as long as you like," said the bushy long-tailed gentleman.
Sie dürfen dort so lange sitzen, wie Sie möchten", sagte der buschige langschwänzige Herr.
He led the way to a very retired, dismal-looking house amongst the fox-gloves.
Er führte den Weg zu einem sehr abgelegenen, trostlos aussehenden Haus inmitten der Fingerhutpflanzen.
It was built of faggots and turf, and there were two broken pails, one on top of another, by way of a chimney.
Es war aus Reisigbündeln und Torf gebaut, und da waren zwei zerbrochene Eimer, einer auf dem anderen, als eine Art Schornstein.
"This is my summer residence; you would not find my earth--my winter house--so convenient," said the hospitable gentleman.
„Dies ist mein Sommerresidenz; Sie würden meinen Bau – mein Winterhaus – nicht so bequem finden", sagte der gastfreundliche Herr.
There was a tumble-down shed at the back of the house, made of old soap-boxes.
Hinter dem Haus befand sich ein baufälliger Schuppen, der aus alten Seifenkisten gebaut war.
The gentleman opened the door, and showed Jemima in.
Der Herr öffnete die Tür und ließ Jemima eintreten.
The shed was almost quite full of feathers--it was almost suffocating; but it was comfortable and very soft.
Der Schuppen war fast ganz voll mit Federn – es war fast erstickend; aber es war gemütlich und sehr weich.
Jemima Puddle-duck was rather surprised to find such a vast quantity of feathers.
Jemima Puddle-Ente war ziemlich überrascht, eine so große Menge an Federn vorzufinden.
But it was very comfortable; and she made a nest without any trouble at all.
Aber es war sehr gemütlich; und sie baute ein Nest ganz ohne Mühe.
When she came out, the sandy whiskered gentleman was sitting on a log reading the newspaper--at least he had it spread out, but he was looking over the top of it.
Als sie herauskam, saß der sandfarbene Schnurrbart-Herr auf einem Baumstamm und las die Zeitung – zumindest hatte er sie ausgebreitet, aber er schaute über den oberen Rand hinweg.
He was so polite, that he seemed almost sorry to let Jemima go home for the night.
Er war so höflich, dass er fast traurig zu sein schien, Jemima für die Nacht nach Hause gehen zu lassen.
He promised to take great care of her nest until she came back again next day.
Er versprach, gut auf ihr Nest aufzupassen, bis sie am nächsten Tag wiederkäme.
Vocabulary
- würde
- Would; past subjunctive of 'werden', used for conditionals
- lehren
- To teach or instruct someone a subject
- sich
- Reflexive pronoun meaning 'oneself' or 'himself/herself'
- um
- Preposition meaning 'around', 'at', or 'about'
- seine
- Possessive pronoun meaning 'his' or 'its'
- eigenen
- Own; adjective emphasizing personal possession or identity
- Angelegenheiten
- Affairs or matters, often personal or business concerns
- kümmern
- To care for, look after, or concern oneself with something
- aber
- Conjunction or adverb meaning 'but' or 'however'
- Nest
- Nest; a bird's dwelling made from twigs and materials
- betrifft
- Concerns or regards; third person singular of 'betreffen'
- da
- Adverb meaning 'there' or 'since' depending on context
- keine
- No, not any; negating article used before nouns
- Schwierigkeit
- Difficulty or trouble encountered in a task or situation
- Sack
- Bag or sack used for carrying loose materials
- voll
- Full; adjective indicating something is completely filled
- Federn
- Feathers; plural of 'Feder', soft covering of birds
- Holzschuppen
- Wooden shed or outhouse for storing wood or tools
- liebe
- Dear or beloved; affectionate adjective used in address
- Dame
- Lady or dame; polite term of address for a woman
- Sie
- Formal 'you'; polite second person singular or plural pronoun
- werden
- To become; auxiliary verb for future tense or passive voice
- niemandem
- Nobody; dative form of 'niemand', indicating no person
- Wege
- Way or path; dative form of 'Weg' in phrase 'im Wege'
- dürfen
- May or to be allowed to; modal verb expressing permission
- dort
- There; adverb indicating a specific location or place
- lange
- Long; adjective or adverb indicating extended duration
- sitzen
- To sit; verb describing the act of being seated
- möchten
- Would like; polite modal verb expressing a wish or desire
- sagte
- Said; past tense of 'sagen', indicating spoken communication
- buschige
- Bushy; adjective describing thick, full, or fluffy growth
- langschwänzige
- Long-tailed; adjective describing an animal with a long tail
- Herr
- Mister or gentleman; formal title or noun for a man
- führte
- Led or guided; past tense of 'führen'
- Weg
- Way or path; a route taken from one place to another
- abgelegenen
- Remote or isolated; adjective describing a far-off location
- trostlos
- Bleak or desolate; adjective meaning without comfort or cheer
- aussehenden
- Looking or appearing; adjectival participle of 'aussehen'
- inmitten
- In the middle of; preposition indicating surrounded position
- Fingerhutpflanzen
- Foxglove plants; tall flowering plants with tubular blossoms
- aus
- Out of or made of; preposition indicating origin or material
- Reisigbündeln
- Bundles of twigs or brushwood used as building material
- Torf
- Peat; organic material used as fuel or building material
- gebaut
- Built or constructed; past participle of 'bauen'
- zerbrochene
- Broken; adjective describing something cracked or shattered
- Eimer
- Bucket or pail used for carrying liquids or materials
- anderen
- Other or another; adjective or pronoun indicating a different one
- als
- As or than; conjunction used in comparisons or temporal clauses
- Art
- Kind, sort, or type; noun describing a category or manner
- Schornstein
- Chimney; a vertical structure for expelling smoke from fires
- Sommerresidenz
- Summer residence; a home used during the summer season
- würden
- Would; plural or formal subjunctive form of 'werden'
- Bau
- Burrow, construction, or den; animal's underground dwelling
- Winterhaus
- Winter house; a home used during the cold winter season
- bequem
- Comfortable or convenient; adjective describing ease or comfort
- finden
- To find; verb meaning to locate or consider something
- gastfreundliche
- Hospitable; adjective describing a welcoming generous host
- Hinter
- Behind; preposition or prefix indicating a rear position
- befand
- Was located; past tense of 'befinden', to be situated
- baufälliger
- Dilapidated or rundown; adjective for a structurally unstable building
- Schuppen
- Shed; a simple outbuilding used for storage or shelter
- Seifenkisten
- Soap boxes or wooden crates originally used for soap
- öffnete
- Opened; past tense of 'öffnen', to open something
- Tür
- Door; an entrance barrier that can be opened or closed
- ließ
- Let or allowed; past tense of 'lassen'
- eintreten
- To enter or step into a room or building
- fast
- Almost or nearly; adverb indicating close proximity to a state
- ganz
- Whole, entirely, or quite; adverb or adjective of completeness
- erstickend
- Stifling or suffocating; adjective describing overwhelming stuffiness
- gemütlich
- Cozy or comfortable; adjective for a warm pleasant atmosphere
- weich
- Soft; adjective describing a smooth or yielding texture
- Puddle-Ente
- Puddle-duck; a dabbling duck that feeds in shallow water
- ziemlich
- Quite or rather; adverb indicating a considerable degree
- überrascht
- Surprised; past participle of 'überraschen', to surprise someone
- Menge
- Quantity or amount; a large number or collection of things
- vorzufinden
- To find present; infinitive meaning to discover something there
- Aber
- But or however; conjunction introducing a contrast or exception
- baute
- Built; past tense of 'bauen', to construct or build
- ohne
- Without; preposition indicating the absence of something
- Mühe
- Effort or trouble; difficulty or exertion required for a task
- Als
- When or as; conjunction introducing a past temporal clause
- herauskam
- Came out; past tense of 'herauskommen', to emerge or exit
- saß
- Sat; past tense of 'sitzen', meaning to be seated
- sandfarbene
- Sand-colored; adjective describing a beige or tan color
- Schnurrbart-Herr
- Whiskered gentleman; a man distinguished by his mustache
- Baumstamm
- Tree trunk; the main woody stem of a tree
- las
- Read; past tense of 'lesen', to read written material
- Zeitung
- Newspaper; a daily or weekly printed publication of news
- zumindest
- At least; adverb indicating a minimum condition or qualification
- ausgebreitet
- Spread out; past participle of 'ausbreiten', to spread open
- schaute
- Looked; past tense of 'schauen', to look or gaze
- über
- Over, about, or above; preposition with various spatial meanings
- oberen
- Upper; adjective in declined form describing a higher position
- Rand
- Edge or rim; the border or margin of an object
- hinweg
- Away or over; adverb indicating movement past or across something
- höflich
- Politely or courteous; adjective describing respectful good manners
- dass
- That; conjunction introducing a subordinate clause
- traurig
- Sad; adjective describing a feeling of sorrow or unhappiness
- schien
- Seemed or appeared; past tense of 'scheinen'
- Nacht
- Night; the dark period between sunset and sunrise
- nach
- To, after, or toward; preposition with directional meaning
- Hause
- Home; dative form used in the phrase 'nach Hause'
- lassen
- To let or allow; modal-like verb expressing permission or causation
- versprach
- Promised; past tense of 'versprechen', to make a promise
- ihr
- Her or her/your; pronoun or possessive depending on context
- aufzupassen
- To watch over or take care; infinitive of 'aufpassen'
- bis
- Until or by; preposition or conjunction indicating a time limit
- nächsten
- Next; adjective in declined form meaning the following one
- wiederkäme
- Would come back; subjunctive of 'wiederkommen', to return
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