The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin — Page 4
riddle-me-ree
raad-maar-raad
Flour of England, fruit of Spain,
Bloem van Engeland, vrucht van Spanje,
Met together in a shower of rain;
Samen gekomen in een regenbui;
Put in a bag tied round with a string,
Gedaan in een zak vastgebonden met een touwtje,
If you'll tell me this riddle, I'll give you a ring!"
Als je me dit raadsel vertelt, geef ik je een ring!"
Which was ridiculous of Nutkin, because he had not got any ring to give to Old Brown.
Wat belachelijk was van Nutkin, want hij had helemaal geen ring om aan Oude Bruine te geven.
The other squirrels hunted up and down the nut bushes; but Nutkin gathered robin's pincushions off a briar bush, and stuck them full of pine-needle pins.
De andere eekhoorns zochten overal tussen de notenbosjes; maar Nutkin plukte speldenkussentjes van een braamstruik, en stak ze vol met dennennaaldenspelden.
On the fifth day the squirrels brought a present of wild honey; it was so sweet and sticky that they licked their fingers as they put it down upon the stone.
Op de vijfde dag brachten de eekhoorns een geschenk van wilde honing; het was zo zoet en kleverig dat ze hun vingers aflikten toen ze het op de steen neerzetten.
They had stolen it out of a bumble bees' nest on the tippitty top of the hill.
Ze hadden het gestolen uit een hommelnest op het allerbovenste topje van de heuvel.
But Nutkin skipped up and down, singing--
Maar Nutkin huppelde op en neer, al zingend--
"Hum-a-bum! buzz! buzz! Hum-a-bum buzz!
"Brom-brom-brom! zoem! zoem! Brom-brom-brom zoem!
As I went over Tipple-tine
Toen ik over Tipple-tijn ging
I met a flock of bonny swine;
Ontmoette ik een kudde prachtige zwijnen;
Some yellow-nacked, some yellow backed!
Sommige geelgenek, sommige geelgerug!
They were the very bonniest swine
Het waren de allermooiste zwijnen
That e'er went over Tipple-tine."
Die ooit over Tipple-tijn gingen."
Old Mr. Brown turned up his eyes in disgust at the impertinence of Nutkin.
De oude heer Bruine sloeg zijn ogen ten hemel van afschuw over de brutaliteit van Nutkin.
But he ate up the honey!
Maar hij at de honing op!
The squirrels filled their little sacks with nuts.
De eekhoorns vulden hun kleine zakjes met noten.
But Nutkin sat upon a big flat rock, and played ninepins with a crab apple and green fir-cones.
Maar Nutkin zat op een grote platte rots, en speelde kegelen met een wilde appel en groene dennenkegels.
On the sixth day, which was Saturday, the squirrels came again for the last time; they brought a new-laid egg in a little rush basket as a last parting present for Old Brown.
Op de zesde dag, dat was zaterdag, kwamen de eekhoorns voor de laatste keer terug; ze brachten een vers gelegd ei in een klein rietenmand als een laatste afscheidsgeschenk voor Oude Bruine.
Vocabulary
- maar
- Conjunction meaning but or however
- raad
- Advice, counsel, or council
- Bloem
- Flower or blossom
- van
- Preposition meaning of or from
- Engeland
- The country of England
- vrucht
- Fruit or product of a plant
- Spanje
- The country of Spain
- Samen
- Together or jointly with others
- gekomen
- Past participle of komen meaning come
- in
- Preposition meaning in or inside
- een
- Indefinite article meaning a or an
- regenbui
- A rain shower or brief rainstorm
- Gedaan
- Done or finished, past participle of doen
- zak
- A bag, sack, or pocket
- vastgebonden
- Tied up or fastened securely
- met
- Preposition meaning with or using
- touwtje
- A small piece of string or cord
- Als
- Conjunction meaning if or when
- je
- Second person singular pronoun you
- me
- First person singular object pronoun me
- dit
- Demonstrative pronoun meaning this
- raadsel
- A riddle or puzzle to be solved
- vertelt
- Tells or narrates, third person singular
- geef
- Give, first person singular present tense
- ik
- First person singular pronoun I
- ring
- A circular band worn as jewelry
- Wat
- Interrogative or exclamatory word meaning what
- belachelijk
- Ridiculous, absurd, or laughable behavior
- was
- Past tense of zijn meaning was
- want
- Conjunction meaning because or for
- hij
- Third person singular masculine pronoun he
- had
- Past tense of hebben meaning had
- helemaal
- Completely, entirely, or not at all
- geen
- Negative determiner meaning no or none
- om
- Preposition meaning around, for, or at
- aan
- Preposition meaning to, on, or at
- Oude
- Old, adjective describing age
- Bruine
- Brown, adjective describing color
- te
- Particle used before infinitive verbs
- geven
- To give, infinitive form
- De
- Definite article meaning the
- andere
- Other or different, adjective
- eekhoorns
- Squirrels, plural of eekhoorn
- zochten
- Searched or looked for, past tense
- overal
- Everywhere or all over a place
- tussen
- Preposition meaning between or among
- de
- Definite article meaning the
- notenbosjes
- Small nut groves or hazel thickets
- plukte
- Picked or plucked, past tense singular
- speldenkussentjes
- Small pincushions used to hold pins
- braamstruik
- A blackberry or bramble bush plant
- en
- Conjunction meaning and
- stak
- Stuck or inserted, past tense singular
- ze
- Third person pronoun she, they, or them
- vol
- Full or filled with something
- Op
- Preposition meaning on, at, or up
- vijfde
- Fifth, ordinal number
- dag
- Day, a unit of time
- brachten
- Brought, past tense plural of brengen
- geschenk
- A gift or present given to someone
- wilde
- Wild or wanted, adjective or past verb
- honing
- Honey, sweet substance made by bees
- het
- Definite article or pronoun meaning the or it
- zo
- Adverb meaning so, thus, or like this
- zoet
- Sweet in taste or gentle in manner
- kleverig
- Sticky or tacky to the touch
- dat
- Conjunction or pronoun meaning that
- hun
- Their, third person plural possessive pronoun
- vingers
- Fingers, plural of vinger
- aflikten
- Licked off, past tense plural
- toen
- Then or when, referring to past time
- op
- Preposition meaning on or upon
- steen
- Stone or rock, a hard mineral material
- neerzetten
- To put down or place something somewhere
- Ze
- They or she, third person pronoun
- hadden
- Had, past tense plural of hebben
- gestolen
- Stolen, past participle of stelen
- uit
- Preposition meaning out of or from
- hommelnest
- A bumblebee nest or hive
- allerbovenste
- The very topmost or highest of all
- topje
- Small top or tip of something
- heuvel
- A hill or small elevated landform
- Maar
- But or however, contrastive conjunction
- huppelde
- Skipped or hopped along cheerfully
- neer
- Down or downward, directional adverb
- al
- Already or all, adverb or determiner
- zingend
- Singing, present participle of zingen
- zoem
- Zoom or hum, an onomatopoeic word
- Toen
- Then or when, past time reference
- over
- Preposition meaning over, across, or about
- ging
- Went, past tense singular of gaan
- Ontmoette
- Met or encountered, past tense singular
- kudde
- A herd or flock of animals
- prachtige
- Magnificent or splendid, inflected adjective
- zwijnen
- Pigs or swine, plural of zwijn
- Sommige
- Some, referring to part of a group
- sommige
- Some, referring to part of a group
- Het
- Definite article or pronoun meaning the or it
- waren
- Were, past tense plural of zijn
- allermooiste
- The most beautiful of all, superlative
- Die
- Relative or demonstrative pronoun meaning that or those
- ooit
- Ever, at any time
- gingen
- Went, past tense plural of gaan
- oude
- Old, inflected adjective describing age
- heer
- Gentleman, lord, or mister
- sloeg
- Hit or struck, past tense singular
- zijn
- His, possessive pronoun, or to be
- ogen
- Eyes, plural of oog
- ten
- Contraction of te and de meaning to the
- hemel
- Heaven or sky above the earth
- afschuw
- Horror, disgust, or strong aversion
- brutaliteit
- Impudence, cheekiness, or bold rudeness
- at
- Ate, past tense singular of eten
- vulden
- Filled, past tense plural of vullen
- kleine
- Small or little, inflected adjective
- zakjes
- Small bags or pouches, diminutive plural
- noten
- Nuts or musical notes, plural noun
- zat
- Sat or was sitting, past tense singular
- grote
- Big or large, inflected adjective
- platte
- Flat or level, inflected adjective
- rots
- A rock or large stone formation
- speelde
- Played, past tense singular of spelen
- kegelen
- To play bowling or skittles game
- appel
- An apple, common round fruit
- groene
- Green, inflected adjective describing color
- dennenkegels
- Pine cones from a conifer tree
- zesde
- Sixth, ordinal number
- zaterdag
- Saturday, the sixth day of the week
- kwamen
- Came, past tense plural of komen
- voor
- Preposition meaning for, before, or in front of
- laatste
- Last or final, superlative adjective
- keer
- Time or instance, as in one time
- terug
- Back or return, directional adverb
- vers
- Fresh or newly made
- gelegd
- Laid, past participle of leggen
- ei
- An egg laid by a bird
- klein
- Small or little, adjective
- rietenmand
- A small wicker or reed basket
- als
- As or when, conjunction or comparison
- afscheidsgeschenk
- A farewell gift given upon departure
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