The Tale of Two Bad Mice — Page 2
A MINUTE afterwards, Hunca Munca, his wife, put her head out, too; and when she saw that there was no one in the nursery, she ventured out on the oilcloth under the coal-box.
UN MINUTO dopo, Hunca Munca, sua moglie, sporse anch'essa la testa fuori; e quando vide che non c'era nessuno nella stanza dei bambini, si avventurò sul linoleum sotto la carboniera.
THE doll's-house stood at the other side of the fire-place.
LA casa delle bambole si trovava dall'altro lato del caminetto.
Tom Thumb and Hunca Munca went cautiously across the hearthrug.
Tom Pollice e Hunca Munca attraversarono cautamente il tappeto del focolare.
They pushed the front door--it was not fast.
Spinsero la porta d'ingresso -- non era chiusa a chiave.
TOM THUMB and Hunca Munca went upstairs and peeped into the dining-room.
TOM POLLICE e Hunca Munca salirono le scale e spiarono nella sala da pranzo.
Then they squeaked with joy!
Poi stridettero di gioia!
Such a lovely dinner was laid out upon the table!
Una cena così deliziosa era stata apparecchiata sul tavolo!
There were tin spoons, and lead knives and forks, and two dolly-chairs--all so convenient!
C'erano cucchiaini di latta, coltelli e forchette di piombo, e due seggiolini da bambola -- tutto così comodo!
TOM THUMB set to work at once to carve the ham.
TOM POLLICE si mise subito al lavoro per tagliare il prosciutto.
It was a beautiful shiny yellow, streaked with red.
Era di un bel giallo lucente, striato di rosso.
The knife crumpled up and hurt him; he put his finger in his mouth.
Il coltello si piegò e lo ferì; si mise il dito in bocca.
"It is not boiled enough; it is hard. You have a try, Hunca Munca."
«Non è abbastanza cotto; è duro. Prova tu, Hunca Munca.»
HUNCA MUNCA stood up in her chair, and chopped at the ham with another lead knife.
HUNCA MUNCA si alzò in piedi sulla sua sedia, e colpì il prosciutto con un altro coltello di piombo.
"It's as hard as the hams at the cheesemonger's," said Hunca Munca.
«È duro come i prosciutti dal salumiere,» disse Hunca Munca.
THE ham broke off the plate with a jerk, and rolled under the table.
IL prosciutto si staccò dal piatto di scatto, e rotolò sotto il tavolo.
"Let it alone," said Tom Thumb; "give me some fish, Hunca Munca!"
«Lascia perdere,» disse Tom Pollice; «dammi del pesce, Hunca Munca!»
HUNCA MUNCA tried every tin spoon in turn; the fish was glued to the dish.
HUNCA MUNCA provò ogni cucchiaino di latta a turno; il pesce era incollato al piatto.
Then Tom Thumb lost his temper.
Poi Tom Pollice perse la pazienza.
Vocabulary
- MINUTO
- A unit of time equal to sixty seconds
- dopo
- After or later in time or sequence
- sua
- Possessive adjective meaning 'his', 'her', or 'its'
- moglie
- A woman married to a man; wife
- sporse
- Past tense of 'sporgere'; leaned or stuck out
- anch'essa
- She also; referring to another feminine subject too
- testa
- The uppermost part of the body; head
- fuori
- Outside or beyond an enclosed space
- quando
- Conjunction or adverb indicating time; when
- vide
- Past tense of 'vedere'; he/she saw something
- c'era
- Contraction of 'ci era'; there was someone/something
- nessuno
- Pronoun or adjective meaning nobody or no one
- stanza
- An enclosed space within a building; room
- bambini
- Young human beings; children or kids
- avventurò
- Past tense of 'avventurarsi'; ventured or dared to go
- linoleum
- A smooth flat floor covering material
- sotto
- Preposition indicating position below something; under
- carboniera
- A container or storage area used for coal
- casa
- A building where people live; house or home
- bambole
- Small figures resembling humans used as toys; dolls
- trovava
- Imperfect of 'trovare'; was located or found itself
- dall'altro
- Contraction meaning 'from the other' side or direction
- lato
- One of the surfaces or edges of something; side
- caminetto
- A small fireplace built into a wall indoors
- Pollice
- The short thick innermost digit of the hand; thumb
- attraversarono
- Past tense of 'attraversare'; they crossed or traversed
- cautamente
- In a careful and wary manner; cautiously
- tappeto
- A thick fabric covering laid on the floor; carpet
- focolare
- The area in front of or around a fireplace; hearth
- Spinsero
- Past tense of 'spingere'; they pushed something forward
- porta
- A movable barrier used to open or close an entrance; door
- d'ingresso
- Relating to the main entrance of a building; front door
- chiusa
- Feminine adjective meaning shut or not open; closed
- chiave
- A metal instrument used to operate a lock; key
- POLLICE
- The short thick innermost digit of the hand; thumb
- salirono
- Past tense of 'salire'; they went up or climbed
- scale
- A set of steps connecting different floor levels; stairs
- spiarono
- Past tense of 'spiare'; they spied on or peeked at
- sala
- A large room in a house or public building; hall
- pranzo
- The midday meal eaten around noon; lunch or dinner
- Poi
- Adverb indicating what comes next in sequence; then
- stridettero
- Past tense of 'stridere'; they squeaked or shrieked sharply
- gioia
- A feeling of great happiness or delight; joy
- cena
- The evening meal eaten at the end of the day; dinner
- così
- Adverb meaning in this way or to such a degree; so
- deliziosa
- Highly pleasant to the taste or senses; delicious
- stata
- Past participle of 'essere' (feminine); had been or was
- apparecchiata
- Past participle of 'apparecchiare'; had been set or laid
- tavolo
- A flat surface on legs used for eating or working; table
- C'erano
- Contraction of 'ci erano'; there were multiple things/people
- cucchiaini
- Small spoons used for stirring or eating; teaspoons
- latta
- A thin sheet of coated metal; tin
- coltelli
- Sharp-bladed utensils used for cutting food; knives
- forchette
- Utensils with prongs used for eating food; forks
- piombo
- A heavy soft grey metallic element; lead
- seggiolini
- Small chairs designed for young children or dolls
- bambola
- A small figure resembling a human used as a toy; doll
- tutto
- Pronoun or adjective meaning everything or all of it
- comodo
- Providing physical ease and relaxation; comfortable
- mise
- Past tense of 'mettere'; he/she put or placed something
- subito
- Adverb meaning without delay; immediately or at once
- lavoro
- An activity involving effort to achieve a result; work
- tagliare
- To divide or separate with a sharp instrument; to cut
- prosciutto
- Italian cured or cooked meat made from pork leg; ham
- bel
- Shortened form of 'bello'; beautiful or attractive (masculine)
- giallo
- A colour resembling ripe lemons or sunflowers; yellow
- lucente
- Reflecting light strongly; shiny or gleaming
- striato
- Marked with narrow parallel bands or lines; striped
- rosso
- A colour at the end of the visible spectrum; red
- coltello
- A sharp-bladed utensil used for cutting food; knife
- piegò
- Past tense of 'piegare'; it bent or folded under pressure
- ferì
- Past tense of 'ferire'; it wounded or hurt someone
- dito
- One of the five digits of the hand or foot; finger
- bocca
- The opening in the face used for eating and speaking; mouth
- abbastanza
- To a sufficient degree or amount; enough or quite
- cotto
- Past participle of 'cuocere'; prepared by applying heat; cooked
- duro
- Not easily cut, broken, or bent; hard or tough
- Prova
- Imperative of 'provare'; try it or give it a go
- alzò
- Past tense of 'alzare'; he/she raised or lifted something up
- piedi
- The lower extremities of the legs used for standing; feet
- sedia
- A separate seat for one person with a back; chair
- colpì
- Past tense of 'colpire'; he/she struck or hit something
- altro
- Adjective or pronoun meaning different or additional; other
- come
- Adverb or conjunction meaning in what way; how or like
- prosciutti
- Plural of prosciutto; Italian cured pork leg meats
- salumiere
- A person who sells cured meats and cold cuts; delicatessen owner
- disse
- Past tense of 'dire'; he/she said or told something
- staccò
- Past tense of 'staccare'; he/she detached or pulled something off
- piatto
- A flat dish used for serving or eating food; plate
- scatto
- A sudden sharp movement or jerk; snap or jolt
- rotolò
- Past tense of 'rotolare'; it rolled or tumbled away
- Lascia
- Imperative of 'lasciare'; leave it or let it go
- perdere
- To fail to keep or maintain something; to lose
- dammi
- Imperative of 'dare' with pronoun; give it to me
- pesce
- A cold-blooded aquatic vertebrate eaten as food; fish
- provò
- Past tense of 'provare'; he/she tried or attempted something
- ogni
- Adjective meaning each one individually; every or each
- cucchiaino
- A small spoon used for stirring drinks; teaspoon
- turno
- An occasion when one person takes their designated time; turn
- incollato
- Past participle of 'incollare'; stuck fast with adhesive; glued
- perse
- Past tense of 'perdere'; he/she lost something important
- pazienza
- The capacity to accept delay without becoming annoyed; patience
Unlock audio playback, vocabulary games, and reading progress tracking.
Create free account →