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Illustration for The Wild Swans

Portuguese · Intermediate

Os cisnes selvagens

Adapted from The Wild Swans

By Hans Christian Andersen

A princess works in silence to free her brothers from an enchantment that turns them into swans.

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Intermediate sample in Portuguese

Scene 1

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Illustration for the scene “The wicked stepmother”

Scene 1 · Intermediate

A madrasta malvada

The wicked stepmother

Portuguese

Numa terra distante, para onde as andorinhas voam no inverno, vivia um rei com onze filhos e uma filha chamada Elisa. Os meninos iam à escola com uma estrela no peito e uma espada ao lado. Usavam lápis de diamante e pequenas lousas de ouro, e aprendiam com tanta facilidade que ninguém duvidava de que eram príncipes.

English translation

In a distant land, where the swallows fly in winter, there lived a king with eleven sons and a daughter named Elisa. The boys went to school with a star on their chests and a sword at their sides. They used diamond pencils and little slates of gold, and learned so easily that no one doubted they were princes.

Portuguese

Elisa, por sua vez, sentava-se num banquinho de vidro polido e olhava um livro de figuras que havia custado tanto quanto meio reino.

English translation

Elisa, meanwhile, sat on a stool made of polished glass and looked at a picture book that had cost as much as half a kingdom.

Portuguese

A vida das crianças era feliz, mas tudo mudou quando o pai se casou com uma rainha malvada. A nova madrasta não gostava delas, e fez questão de mostrar isso logo depois do casamento. Durante os festejos do palácio, as crianças brincavam de receber visitas. Em outras ocasiões, ganhavam os bolos e as maçãs que sobravam da festa.

English translation

The children’s lives were happy, but everything changed when their father married a wicked queen. Their new stepmother disliked them, and made sure to show it soon after the wedding. During celebrations at the palace, the children played at receiving visitors. On other occasions, they were given the cakes and apples left over from the feast.

Portuguese

Dessa vez, porém, a rainha lhes entregou uma xícara com um pouco de areia e mandou que fingissem que era bolo.

English translation

This time, however, the queen gave them a cup with a little sand in it and ordered them to pretend it was cake.

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