The Spanish reading room
One sentence of «Las medias de los flamencos»
Las víboras coloradas llevaban una pollerita de tul colorado; las verdes, una de tul verde; las amarillas, otra de tul amarillo; y las yararás, una pollerita de tul gris pintada con rayas de polvo de ladrillo y ceniza, porque así es el color de las yararás.
The red snakes wore a little skirt of red tulle; the green ones, one of green tulle; the yellow ones, another of yellow tulle; and the yararás, a little skirt of grey tulle painted with stripes of brick dust and ash, because that is the colour of a yarará.
Where it stands
The sentences either side of it, each with its own page.
Pero las que estaban hermosísimas eran las víboras.
But the ones who were most beautiful were the snakes.
Todas, sin excepción, estaban vestidas con traje de bailarina, del mismo color de cada víbora.
All of them, without exception, were dressed in ballerina costume, each in the colour of her own kind.
Every word in it
| As printed | Dictionary form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Las | el | the (def. art., f. pl.); also them (f. object pron., before a verb) |
| víboras | víbora | snake, viper (n., f.) |
| coloradas | colorado | red, ruddy (adj., the usual River Plate word for red) |
| llevaban | llevar | to wear (v.) |
| una | un | a, an, one (indef. art.) |
| pollerita | pollerita | little skirt (n., f., diminutive of pollera, River Plate) |
| de | de | of, from (prep.) |
| tul | tul | tulle, fine net (n., m.) |
| verdes | verde | green (adj.) |
| amarillas | amarillo | yellow (adj.) |
| otra | otro | other, another (adj./pron.) |
| y | y | and (conj.) |
| yararás | yarará | yarará, a deadly pit viper of the region (n., f., from Guaraní) |
| gris | gris | grey (adj.) |
| pintada | pintar | to paint (v.) |
| con | con | with (prep.) |
| rayas | raya | stripe, line (n., f.) |
| polvo | polvo | dust (n., m.) |
| ladrillo | ladrillo | brick (n., m.) |
| ceniza | ceniza | ash (n., f.) |
| porque | porque | because (conj.) |
| así | así | thus, so, like this (adv.) |
| es | ser | to be — what a thing IS, against estar, how it is right now (v.) |
| color | color | colour (n., m.) |
Read «Las medias de los flamencos» in the room Every word glossed where it stands, the English a tap away. The whole tale is free and asks for no account.