The Spanish reading room
One sentence of «Las medias de los flamencos»
Las víboras querían bailar con ellos únicamente, y como los flamencos no dejaban un instante de mover las patas, las víboras no podían ver bien de qué estaban hechas aquellas preciosas medias.
The snakes wanted to dance with them and no one else, and since the flamingos never stopped moving their legs for an instant, the snakes could not see properly what those lovely stockings were made of.
Where it stands
The sentences either side of it, each with its own page.
Cuando vieron a los flamencos con sus hermosísimas medias, todos les tuvieron envidia.
When they saw the flamingos in their most beautiful stockings, everyone envied them.
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.) |
| querían | querer | to want; to love (v.) |
| bailar | bailar | to dance (v.) |
| con | con | with (prep.) |
| ellos | él | they, them (pron., m. pl.) |
| únicamente | únicamente | only, solely (adv.) |
| y | y | and (conj.) |
| como | como | as, like; since (conj./adv.) |
| flamencos | flamenco | flamingo (n., m.) |
| no | no | no, not (adv.) |
| dejaban | dejar | to stop, cease (dejar de) (v.) |
| un | un | a, an, one (indef. art.) |
| instante | instante | instant, moment (n., m.) |
| de | de | of, from (prep.) |
| mover | mover | to move (v.) |
| patas | pata | paw, leg of an animal (n., f.) |
| podían | poder | to be able, can (v.) |
| ver | ver | to see (v.) |
| bien | bien | well; very (adv.) |
| qué | qué | what; how (interrog.); in the 1918 printing also the que of a wish — ¡qué vengan! may they come! |
| estaban | estar | to be — where a thing is, or how it is right now, against ser, what it is (v.) |
| hechas | hacer | to do, make (v.) |
| aquellas | aquel | that, that one over there (dem. adj./pron.) |
| preciosas | precioso | precious, lovely (adj.) |
| medias | media | stocking (n., f.) |
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.