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The Tale of Tom Kitten — Page 2

English → It Full Text Level 2/10

Tabitha unwisely turned them out into the garden, to be out of the way while she made hot buttered toast.

Tabitha li mandò imprudentemente fuori in giardino, per toglierli dai piedi mentre preparava toast caldo imburrato.

"Now keep your frocks clean, children! You must walk on your hind legs.

"Ora tenete i vostri vestitini puliti, bambini! Dovete camminare sulle zampe posteriori.

Keep away from the dirty ash-pit, and from Sally Henny Penny, and from the pig-stye and the Puddle-Ducks."

State lontani dalla buca della cenere sporca, e da Sally Chioccia Pennuta, e dal porcile e dalle Anatre Pozzanghera."

Moppet and Mittens walked down the garden path unsteadily.

Moppet e Mittens percorsero il sentiero del giardino con passo malfermo.

Presently they trod upon their pinafores and fell on their noses.

Poco dopo calpestarono i loro grembiulini e caddero sul muso.

When they stood up there were several green smears!

Quando si rialzarono c'erano diverse macchie verdi!

"Let us climb up the rockery, and sit on the garden wall," said Moppet.

«Saliamo sulla roccia e sediamoci sul muro del giardino», disse Moppet.

They turned their pinafores back to front, and went up with a skip and a jump; Moppet's white tucker fell down into the road.

Girarono i loro grembiulini da dietro a davanti, e salirono saltellando e balzando; il collettino bianco di Moppet cadde giù nella strada.

Tom Kitten was quite unable to jump when walking upon his hind legs in trousers.

Tom Gattino era del tutto incapace di saltare mentre camminava sulle zampe posteriori con i pantaloni.

He came up the rockery by degrees, breaking the ferns, and shedding buttons right and left.

Salì sulla roccia a poco a poco, rompendo le felci e perdendo bottoni a destra e a manca.

He was all in pieces when he reached the top of the wall.

Era tutto a pezzi quando raggiunse la cima del muro.

Moppet and Mittens tried to pull him together; his hat fell off, and the rest of his buttons burst.

Moppet e Mittens cercarono di rimetterlo in ordine; il suo cappello cadde, e il resto dei suoi bottoni scoppiò.

While they were in difficulties, there was a pit pat paddle pat! and the three Puddle-Ducks came along the hard high road, marching one behind the other and doing the goose step--pit pat paddle pat! pit pat waddle pat!

Mentre erano in difficoltà, si udì un patapit patapit! e le tre Anatre Pozzanghera arrivarono lungo la strada maestra, marciando una dietro l'altra e facendo il passo dell'oca -- patapit patapit! patapit patadondol!

They stopped and stood in a row, and stared up at the kittens.

Si fermarono e si misero in fila, e fissarono i gattini dall'alto in basso.

They had very small eyes and looked surprised.

Avevano occhi molto piccoli e sembravano sorprese.

Vocabulary

li
Them; third person plural object pronoun.
mandò
Sent; past tense of 'mandare', to send.
imprudentemente
Imprudently; acting without caution or care.
fuori
Outside; indicates position or movement outward.
in
In; common preposition indicating location or direction.
giardino
Garden; an outdoor space for growing plants.
per
For; preposition indicating purpose or direction.
toglierli
To remove them; get them out of the way.
dai
From the; contraction of 'da' and 'i'.
piedi
Feet; the lowest part of the legs.
mentre
While; conjunction indicating simultaneous actions.
preparava
Was preparing; imperfect tense of 'preparare'.
toast
Toast; toasted bread, borrowed English word.
caldo
Hot; describing high temperature or warmth.
imburrato
Buttered; spread or coated with butter.
Ora
Now; refers to the present moment.
tenete
Keep; imperative plural of 'tenere', to keep.
i
The; masculine plural definite article.
vostri
Your; possessive adjective for plural second person.
vestitini
Little outfits; diminutive of 'vestiti', clothes.
puliti
Clean; free from dirt or stains.
bambini
Children; young boys or girls.
Dovete
You must; second person plural of 'dovere'.
camminare
To walk; to move on foot at a normal pace.
sulle
On the; contraction of 'su' and 'le'.
zampe
Paws; an animal's feet or legs.
posteriori
Hind; referring to the back limbs of an animal.
State
Stay; imperative plural of 'stare', to stay.
lontani
Far; at a distance, away from something.
dalla
From the; contraction of 'da' and 'la'.
buca
Hole; a hollow or pit in a surface.
della
Of the; contraction of 'di' and 'la'.
cenere
Ash; the residue left after burning something.
sporca
Dirty; soiled or stained with dirt.
e
And; a conjunction joining words or clauses.
da
From; preposition indicating origin or distance.
Chioccia
Hen; a female chicken, especially a brooding one.
Pennuta
Feathered; having feathers, used as a character name.
dal
From the; contraction of 'da' and 'il'.
porcile
Pigsty; an enclosure or shelter for pigs.
dalle
From the; contraction of 'da' and 'le'.
Anatre
Ducks; aquatic birds often found near ponds.
Pozzanghera
Puddle; a small pool of water on the ground.
percorsero
Walked along; past tense of 'percorrere', to travel.
il
The; masculine singular definite article.
sentiero
Path; a narrow trail for walking outdoors.
del
Of the; contraction of 'di' and 'il'.
con
With; a preposition indicating accompaniment or manner.
passo
Step; a single movement of the foot while walking.
malfermo
Unsteady; lacking stability or firmness while moving.
Poco
Little; a small amount of time or quantity.
dopo
After; indicates a following point in time.
calpestarono
They stepped on; past tense of 'calpestare'.
loro
Their; possessive or third person plural pronoun.
grembiulini
Little aprons; small decorative aprons worn by children.
caddero
Fell; past tense of 'cadere', to fall down.
sul
On the; contraction of 'su' and 'il'.
muso
Snout; the nose and mouth area of an animal.
Quando
When; a conjunction or adverb referring to time.
si
Themselves; reflexive pronoun for third person.
rialzarono
Got up again; past tense of 'rialzarsi', to rise.
c'
There; contraction of 'ci' before a vowel.
erano
Were; past tense of 'essere', to be.
diverse
Several; indicating a number of different things.
macchie
Stains; marks or spots of dirt on a surface.
verdi
Green; the color of grass and leaves.
Saliamo
Let's climb; first person plural imperative of 'salire'.
sulla
On the; contraction of 'su' and 'la'.
roccia
Rock; a large hard mass of stone.
sediamoci
Let's sit down; reflexive imperative of 'sedersi'.
muro
Wall; a vertical structure made of brick or stone.
disse
Said; past tense of 'dire', to say.
Girarono
They turned; past tense of 'girare', to turn around.
dietro
Behind; at the back of something or someone.
a
To; a preposition indicating direction or location.
davanti
In front; positioned at the forward side.
salirono
They climbed; past tense of 'salire', to go up.
saltellando
Hopping; moving with small light jumps.
balzando
Leaping; moving with sudden large jumps.
collettino
Little collar; a small decorative collar on clothing.
bianco
White; the lightest color, opposite of black.
di
Of; a preposition indicating belonging or origin.
cadde
Fell; past tense singular of 'cadere', to fall.
giù
Down; in a downward direction or position.
nella
In the; contraction of 'in' and 'la'.
strada
Street; a public road in a town or city.
Gattino
Kitten; a young cat, diminutive of 'gatto'.
era
Was; past tense singular of 'essere', to be.
tutto
All; entirely or completely covered in something.
incapace
Incapable; unable to perform a certain action.
saltare
To jump; to leap off the ground or a surface.
camminava
Was walking; imperfect tense of 'camminare'.
pantaloni
Trousers; a garment covering the legs separately.
Salì
He climbed; past tense of 'salire', to go up.
poco
A little; referring to a small amount or degree.
rompendo
Breaking; gerund of 'rompere', breaking something apart.
le
The; feminine plural definite article.
felci
Ferns; leafy plants commonly found in forests.
perdendo
Losing; gerund of 'perdere', losing something.
bottoni
Buttons; small fasteners used on clothing.
destra
Right; the right-hand side or direction.
manca
Left; the left-hand side, or something is missing.
Era
Was; past tense of 'essere', to be.
pezzi
Pieces; fragments or parts of something broken.
quando
When; a conjunction indicating a point in time.
raggiunse
Reached; past tense of 'raggiungere', to arrive at.
la
The; feminine singular definite article.
cima
Top; the highest point of something.
cercarono
They tried; past tense of 'cercare', to try or seek.
rimetterlo
To put him back; to restore or reassemble something.
ordine
Order; a neat and tidy arrangement of things.
suo
His/her; possessive adjective for third person singular.
cappello
Hat; a head covering worn as clothing or accessory.
resto
Rest; the remaining part of something.
dei
Of the; contraction of 'di' and 'i'.
suoi
His/her; masculine plural possessive adjective.
scoppiò
Burst; past tense of 'scoppiare', to burst or explode.
Mentre
While; conjunction indicating two simultaneous events.
difficoltà
Difficulty; a situation that is hard to manage.
udì
Heard; past tense of 'udire', to hear a sound.
un
A; masculine singular indefinite article.
tre
Three; the number between two and four.
arrivarono
They arrived; past tense of 'arrivare', to arrive.
lungo
Along; preposition meaning along a path or road.
maestra
Teacher; a female instructor, or leading figure.
marciando
Marching; moving with steady rhythmic steps.
una
One; feminine singular indefinite article or numeral.
l'
The; elided definite article before a vowel.
altra
Other; referring to a second or different one.
facendo
Doing; gerund of 'fare', making or performing an action.
dell'
Of the; elided contraction of 'di' and 'l''.
oca
Goose; a large waterfowl; also means silly person.
Si
Themselves; reflexive pronoun for third person.
fermarono
They stopped; past tense of 'fermarsi', to stop.
misero
They put themselves; past tense of 'mettere'.
fila
Line; a row or queue of people or things.
fissarono
They stared; past tense of 'fissare', to gaze intently.
gattini
Kittens; young cats, plural of 'gattino'.
dall'
From the; elided contraction of 'da' and 'l''.
alto
High; elevated position or tall in stature.
basso
Low; at a lower level or position.
Avevano
They had; past tense of 'avere', to have.
occhi
Eyes; the organs used for seeing.
molto
Very; an adverb intensifying an adjective or adverb.
piccoli
Small; of a little size, plural of 'piccolo'.
sembravano
They seemed; imperfect tense of 'sembrare', to seem.
sorprese
Surprised; feeling or showing sudden astonishment.
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