The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse — Page 4
He was sitting all over a small rocking-chair, twiddling his thumbs and smiling, with his feet on the fender.
Estaba despatarrado en una pequeña mecedora, dando vueltas a los pulgares y sonriendo, con los pies en el guardafuego.
He lived in a drain below the hedge, in a very dirty wet ditch.
Vivía en una alcantarilla debajo del seto, en una zanja muy sucia y húmeda.
[Illustration: Mr. Jackson]
[Ilustración: El señor Jackson]
[Illustration: Sitting and dripping]
[Ilustración: Sentado y chorreando]
"How do you do, Mr. Jackson? Deary me, you have got very wet!"
«¿Cómo está usted, señor Jackson? ¡Vaya por Dios, se ha puesto usted muy mojado!»
"Thank you, thank you, thank you, Mrs. Tittlemouse! I'll sit awhile and dry myself," said Mr. Jackson.
«¡Gracias, gracias, gracias, señora Tittlemouse! Me sentaré un rato y me secaré», dijo el señor Jackson.
He sat and smiled, and the water dripped off his coat tails. Mrs. Tittlemouse went round with a mop.
Se sentó y sonrió, y el agua chorreaba por los faldones de su chaqueta. La señora Tittlemouse fue a buscar una fregona.
He sat such a while that he had to be asked if he would take some dinner?
Estuvo sentado tanto tiempo que hubo que preguntarle si quería cenar algo.
First she offered him cherry-stones. "Thank you, thank you, Mrs. Tittlemouse! No teeth, no teeth, no teeth!" said Mr. Jackson.
Primero le ofreció huesos de cereza. «¡Gracias, gracias, señora Tittlemouse! ¡Sin dientes, sin dientes, sin dientes!», dijo el señor Jackson.
He opened his mouth most unnecessarily wide; he certainly had not a tooth in his head.
Abrió la boca de manera del todo innecesaria; desde luego no tenía ni un solo diente.
[Illustration: Feeding Mr. Jackson]
[Ilustración: Dando de comer al señor Jackson]
[Illustration: Thistledown]
[Ilustración: Vilanos de cardo]
Then she offered him thistle-down seed--"Tiddly, widdly, widdly! Pouff, pouff, puff!" said Mr. Jackson. He blew the thistle-down all over the room.
Luego le ofreció semillas de vilano de cardo: «¡Tilín, tilán, tilán! ¡Puf, puf, puf!», dijo el señor Jackson. Sopló los vilanos por toda la habitación.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you, Mrs. Tittlemouse! Now what I really--_really_ should like--would be a little dish of honey!"
«¡Gracias, gracias, gracias, señora Tittlemouse! Ahora lo que yo de verdad —de _verdad_— me gustaría sería un platito de miel.»
"I am afraid I have not got any, Mr. Jackson," said Mrs. Tittlemouse.
«Me temo que no tengo, señor Jackson», dijo la señora Tittlemouse.
"Tiddly, widdly, widdly, Mrs. Tittlemouse!" said the smiling Mr. Jackson, "I can _smell_ it; that is why I came to call."
«¡Tilín, tilán, tilán, señora Tittlemouse!», dijo el sonriente señor Jackson, «puedo _olerla_; por eso vine a visitarla.»
Mr. Jackson rose ponderously from the table, and began to look into the cupboards.
El señor Jackson se levantó pesadamente de la mesa y comenzó a mirar dentro de los armarios.
Mrs.
La señora
Vocabulary
- Estaba
- Third person singular imperfect of 'estar,' meaning 'was'
- despatarrado
- Sprawled out with legs wide apart
- en
- Preposition meaning 'in,' 'on,' or 'at'
- una
- Feminine indefinite article meaning 'a' or 'an'
- pequeña
- Feminine adjective meaning 'small' or 'little'
- mecedora
- A rocking chair used for sitting and swaying
- dando
- Gerund of 'dar,' meaning 'giving' or 'doing'
- vueltas
- Turns or rotations; 'dar vueltas' means to spin
- a
- Preposition meaning 'to,' 'at,' or 'by'
- los
- Masculine plural definite article meaning 'the'
- pulgares
- Plural of 'pulgar,' meaning thumbs
- y
- Conjunction meaning 'and'
- sonriendo
- Gerund of 'sonreír,' meaning 'smiling'
- con
- Preposition meaning 'with'
- pies
- Plural of 'pie,' meaning feet
- el
- Masculine singular definite article meaning 'the'
- guardafuego
- A fireplace screen or fender protecting from sparks
- Vivía
- Imperfect tense of 'vivir,' meaning 'he/she lived'
- alcantarilla
- A drain, sewer, or underground water channel
- debajo
- Adverb/preposition meaning 'under' or 'below'
- del
- Contraction of 'de' and 'el,' meaning 'of the'
- seto
- A hedge or bush used as a boundary or fence
- zanja
- A ditch or trench dug in the ground
- muy
- Adverb meaning 'very,' intensifying adjectives
- sucia
- Feminine adjective meaning 'dirty' or 'filthy'
- húmeda
- Feminine adjective meaning 'damp' or 'humid'
- Ilustración
- An illustration or image accompanying a text
- El
- Masculine singular definite article meaning 'the'
- señor
- Title of address meaning 'Mr.' or 'gentleman'
- Sentado
- Past participle of 'sentar,' meaning 'seated' or 'sitting'
- chorreando
- Gerund of 'chorrear,' meaning dripping or streaming with liquid
- Cómo
- Interrogative adverb meaning 'how'
- está
- Third person singular present of 'estar,' meaning 'is'
- usted
- Formal second person singular pronoun meaning 'you'
- Vaya
- Exclamation expressing surprise, meaning 'well' or 'goodness'
- por
- Preposition meaning 'for,' 'by,' or 'through'
- Dios
- Noun meaning 'God'; used in common Spanish exclamations
- se
- Reflexive pronoun used with reflexive or passive verbs
- ha
- Third person singular present of 'haber,' auxiliary 'has'
- puesto
- Past participle of 'poner'; here means 'become' or 'gotten'
- mojado
- Adjective meaning 'wet' or 'soaked'
- Gracias
- Expression of thanks meaning 'thank you'
- señora
- Title of address meaning 'Mrs.' or 'madam'
- Me
- First person singular reflexive or object pronoun meaning 'me'
- sentaré
- First person singular future of 'sentar,' meaning 'I will sit'
- un
- Masculine indefinite article meaning 'a' or 'an'
- rato
- A short period of time; a while or a moment
- me
- First person singular reflexive or object pronoun meaning 'me'
- secaré
- First person singular future of 'secar,' meaning 'I will dry'
- dijo
- Third person singular preterite of 'decir,' meaning 'said'
- Se
- Reflexive pronoun used with reflexive verbs
- sentó
- Third person singular preterite of 'sentar,' meaning 'sat down'
- sonrió
- Third person singular preterite of 'sonreír,' meaning 'smiled'
- agua
- Noun meaning 'water'
- chorreaba
- Imperfect of 'chorrear,' meaning 'was dripping' or 'streaming'
- faldones
- The tails or lower flaps of a coat or jacket
- de
- Preposition meaning 'of,' 'from,' or 'about'
- su
- Possessive adjective meaning 'his,' 'her,' or 'their'
- chaqueta
- A jacket or short coat worn as outer clothing
- La
- Feminine singular definite article meaning 'the'
- fue
- Third person singular preterite of 'ir/ser,' meaning 'went' or 'was'
- buscar
- Infinitive meaning 'to look for' or 'to fetch'
- fregona
- A mop used for cleaning floors with water
- Estuvo
- Third person singular preterite of 'estar,' meaning 'was' or 'stayed'
- tanto
- Adjective/adverb meaning 'so much' or 'so long'
- tiempo
- Noun meaning 'time' or 'weather'
- que
- Conjunction or relative pronoun meaning 'that' or 'which'
- hubo
- Third person singular preterite of 'haber,' meaning 'there was'
- preguntarle
- Infinitive plus pronoun meaning 'to ask him/her'
- si
- Conjunction meaning 'if' or 'whether'
- quería
- Imperfect of 'querer,' meaning 'wanted' or 'wished'
- cenar
- Infinitive meaning 'to have dinner' or 'to dine'
- algo
- Indefinite pronoun meaning 'something' or 'anything'
- Primero
- Adverb/adjective meaning 'first' or 'firstly'
- le
- Third person indirect object pronoun meaning 'him,' 'her,' or 'you'
- ofreció
- Third person singular preterite of 'ofrecer,' meaning 'offered'
- huesos
- Plural of 'hueso,' meaning bones or pits of fruit
- cereza
- A cherry, a small round red or black fruit
- Sin
- Preposition meaning 'without'
- dientes
- Plural of 'diente,' meaning teeth
- Abrió
- Third person singular preterite of 'abrir,' meaning 'opened'
- la
- Feminine singular definite article or object pronoun meaning 'the/it'
- boca
- Noun meaning 'mouth'
- manera
- Noun meaning 'manner,' 'way,' or 'fashion'
- todo
- Adjective/pronoun meaning 'all,' 'every,' or 'whole'
- innecesaria
- Feminine adjective meaning 'unnecessary' or 'needless'
- desde
- Preposition meaning 'from' or 'since'
- luego
- Adverb meaning 'then,' 'later,' or 'of course'
- no
- Negation adverb meaning 'no' or 'not'
- tenía
- Imperfect of 'tener,' meaning 'had' or 'used to have'
- ni
- Conjunction meaning 'nor,' 'not even,' or 'neither'
- solo
- Adjective/adverb meaning 'alone,' 'only,' or 'single'
- diente
- A single tooth in the mouth
- Dando
- Gerund of 'dar,' meaning 'giving' or 'feeding'
- comer
- Infinitive meaning 'to eat'; also 'lunch' as a noun
- al
- Contraction of 'a' and 'el,' meaning 'to the'
- Vilanos
- Plural of 'vilano,' meaning thistledown or seed fluff
- cardo
- A thistle plant with spiny leaves and fluffy seeds
- semillas
- Plural of 'semilla,' meaning seeds of a plant
- vilano
- Thistledown; the feathery part of a thistle seed
- Sopló
- Third person singular preterite of 'soplar,' meaning 'blew'
- vilanos
- Plural of 'vilano'; thistledown seeds blown through the air
- toda
- Feminine form of 'todo,' meaning 'all' or 'the whole'
- habitación
- A room inside a house or building
- Ahora
- Adverb meaning 'now' or 'at this moment'
- lo
- Neuter or masculine object pronoun meaning 'it' or 'him'
- yo
- First person singular subject pronoun meaning 'I'
- verdad
- Noun meaning 'truth'; also used to mean 'really'
- gustaría
- Conditional of 'gustar,' meaning 'would like' or 'would please'
- sería
- Conditional of 'ser,' meaning 'would be'
- platito
- Diminutive of 'plato,' meaning a small plate or dish
- miel
- Noun meaning 'honey,' a sweet substance made by bees
- temo
- First person singular present of 'temer,' meaning 'I fear'
- tengo
- First person singular present of 'tener,' meaning 'I have'
- sonriente
- Adjective meaning 'smiling' or 'with a smile'
- puedo
- First person singular present of 'poder,' meaning 'I can'
- olerla
- Infinitive 'oler' plus pronoun; meaning 'to smell it'
- eso
- Demonstrative pronoun meaning 'that' (neuter form)
- vine
- First person singular preterite of 'venir,' meaning 'I came'
- visitarla
- Infinitive 'visitar' plus pronoun; meaning 'to visit her'
- levantó
- Third person singular preterite of 'levantar,' meaning 'rose' or 'stood up'
- pesadamente
- Adverb meaning 'heavily' or 'with great effort'
- mesa
- Noun meaning 'table,' a flat surface for eating or working
- comenzó
- Third person singular preterite of 'comenzar,' meaning 'began'
- mirar
- Infinitive meaning 'to look at' or 'to watch'
- dentro
- Adverb/preposition meaning 'inside' or 'within'
- armarios
- Plural of 'armario,' meaning cupboards or wardrobes
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