A Última Tentativa
Ana tenta qualificar-se para a maratona de Lisboa depois de uma lesão que a afastou do atletismo durante dois anos.
tentar—to try / to attemptRead this in the PortuStories app
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Story opening — Portuguese with English Translation
Ana tinha trinta e dois anos e uma lesão no joelho que a tinha afastado do atletismo durante vinte e três meses. Durante esse tempo, tinha tentado manter-se ativa — natação, ioga, caminhadas longas — mas nada substituía a corrida. A corrida era a linguagem do seu corpo. E agora tentava reaprendê-la, passo a passo, num parque às seis da manhã.
Ana was thirty-two years old and had a knee injury that had kept her away from athletics for twenty-three months. During that time, she had tried to stay active — swimming, yoga, long walks — but nothing replaced running. Running was the language of her body. And now she was trying to relearn it, step by step, in a park at six in the morning.
O seu fisioterapeuta, o doutor Ferreira, tinha-lhe dito que podia tentar correr curtas distâncias a partir de setembro. — Tens de tentar devagar — disse ele. — O joelho está bem, mas a cabeça tem de se habituar também. Ana ouviu o conselho. Mas a maratona de Lisboa era em novembro. E ela queria tentar qualificar-se. Tinha dez semanas.
Her physiotherapist, Dr Ferreira, had told her she could try running short distances from September. "You have to try slowly," he said. "The knee is fine, but the head has to get used to it too." Ana heard the advice. But the Lisbon marathon was in November. And she wanted to try to qualify. She had ten weeks.
The remaining 10 paragraphs are in the reader, with audio for every sentence and tap-to-translate on every word.
Vocabulary Glossary
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| tentar | to try / to attempt |
| última | last / final (feminine) |
| tentativa | attempt / try |
| tinha | had (imperfect of ter) |
| trinta e dois | thirty-two |
| anos | years |
| lesão | injury |
| joelho | knee |
| afastado | kept away / sidelined |
| atletismo | athletics / track and field |
| durante | during / for (a period of time) |
| vinte e três | twenty-three |
| meses | months |
| esse | that (masculine demonstrative) |
| tempo | time / weather |
| tentado | tried (past participle of tentar) |
| manter-se | to keep oneself / to stay |
| ativa | active (feminine) |
| natação | swimming |
| ioga | yoga |
| caminhadas | walks / hikes |
| longas | long (feminine plural) |
| nada | nothing |
| substituía | replaced (imperfect of substituir) |
| corrida | run / race |
| era | was (imperfect of ser) |
| linguagem | language / form of expression |
| corpo | body |
| agora | now |
| tentava | was trying / used to try (imperfect of tentar) |
| reaprendê-la | to relearn it (feminine) |
| passo | step |
| passo a passo | step by step |
| parque | park |
| seis | six |
| manhã | morning |
| seu | his / her / its (possessive) |
| fisioterapeuta | physiotherapist |
| doutor | doctor |
| dito | said / told (past participle of dizer) |
| podia | could (imperfect of poder) |
| correr | to run |
| curtas | short (feminine plural) |
| distâncias | distances |
| a partir de | from / starting from |
| setembro | September |
| tens de | you have to / you must |
| devagar | slowly |
| disse | said (preterite of dizer) |
| está | is (present of estar) |
| bem | well / fine |
| cabeça | head / mind |
| habituar | to get used to |
| também | also / too |
| ouviu | heard / listened (preterite of ouvir) |
| conselho | advice |
| maratona | marathon |
| novembro | November |
| queria | wanted (imperfect of querer) |
| qualificar-se | to qualify |
| dez | ten |
| semanas | weeks |
| primeira | first (feminine) |
| semana | week |
| tentou | tried (preterite of tentar) |
| cinco | five |
| quilómetros | kilometres |
| seguidos | in a row / consecutive |
| conseguiu | managed / achieved (preterite of conseguir) |
| quatro | four |
| segunda | second (feminine) |
| de novo | again |
| chegou | arrived / reached (preterite of chegar) |
| cada vez que | every time that |
| havia | there was / there were (imperfect of haver) |
| momento | moment |
| por volta de | around / about (approximate) |
| terceiro | third |
| enviava | was sending (imperfect of enviar) |
| sinal de aviso | warning signal |
| não era | it was not |
| dor | pain |
| exatamente | exactly |
| mais | more / most |
| lembrança | reminder / memory |
| cuidado | care / careful / watch out |
| já | already |
| partiste | you broke (preterite of partir) |
| antes | before |
| amiga | friend (feminine) |
| acompanhava | accompanied / went along with (imperfect of acompanhar) |
| treinos | training sessions / workouts |
| treino | training / workout |
| fim de semana | weekend |
| ainda | still / yet |
| certeza | certainty / sureness |
| queres | you want (present of querer) |
| perguntou | asked (preterite of perguntar) |
| enquanto | while |
| corriam | were running (imperfect of correr) |
| lado a lado | side by side |
| domingo | Sunday |
| outubro | October |
| preciso de | I need to |
| diferença | difference |
| assentiu | nodded / agreed (preterite of assentir) |
| conhecia | knew / was acquainted with (imperfect of conhecer) |
| há | there is / there are; ago (with time) |
| suficientes | enough / sufficient (plural) |
| saber | to know |
| argumento | argument / reasoning |
| valesse | would be worth (imperfect subjunctive of valer) |
| dias | days |
| parecia | seemed (imperfect of parecer) |
| impossível | impossible |
| tarde | afternoon |
| depois de | after |
| chuva | rain |
| forte | strong / heavy (of rain) |
| fazer | to do / to make |
| quinze | fifteen |
| teve de | had to (preterite of ter de) |
| parar | to stop |
| doze | twelve |
| sentou-se | sat down (preterite of sentar-se) |
| banco | bench |
| molhado | wet |
| chorar | to cry |
| sem grande sucesso | without much success |
| homem | man |
| mais velho | older |
| passava | was passing (imperfect of passar) |
| estava | was (imperfect of estar) |
| estou | I am (present of estar) |
| sorriu | smiled (preterite of sorrir) |
| é isso que conta | that is what counts / what matters |
| maior | biggest / greatest |
| até | until / up to |
| data | date |
| até à data | to date / so far |
| vinte | twenty |
| cedo | early |
| Parque das Nações | modern riverside park district in Lisbon |
| quase | almost / nearly |
| vazio | empty |
| correu | ran (preterite of correr) |
| junto a | next to / beside |
| rio | river |
| tentando | trying (gerund of tentar) |
| manter | to maintain / to keep |
| ritmo | pace / rhythm |
| constante | constant / steady |
| aguentou | held up / withstood (preterite of aguentar) |
| foi | was / went (preterite of ser/ir) |
| rápida | fast (feminine) |
| fim | end |
| ficou | stayed / remained (preterite of ficar) |
| chão | ground / floor |
| alívio | relief |
| gratidão | gratitude |
| inscrição | registration / entry |
| exigia | required / demanded (imperfect of exigir) |
| tempo de qualificação | qualifying time |
| sabia | knew (imperfect of saber) |
| atual | current |
| lento | slow |
| demais | too much / excessively |
| então | then / so |
| inscrever-se | to register / to sign up |
| prova | race / competition / event |
| vinte e um | twenty-one |
| meia-maratona | half-marathon |
| Cascais | coastal town west of Lisbon |
| obter | to obtain / to get |
| necessário | necessary / required |
| estratégia | strategy |
| dois passos | two steps |
| primeiro | first (masculine) |
| depois | after / then / afterwards |
| confiança | confidence |
| acordou | woke up (preterite of acordar) |
| comeu | ate (preterite of comer) |
| banana | banana |
| manteiga de amendoim | peanut butter |
| apanhou | caught / took (preterite of apanhar) |
| comboio | train |
| pensar | to think |
| demasiado | too much |
| físico | body / physique |
| preparado | prepared / ready |
| outra | other / another (feminine) |
| questão | question / issue / matter |
| chegar | to arrive / to reach |
| linha de partida | starting line |
| sentiu | felt (preterite of sentir) |
| pulsar | pulsing / throbbing |
| familiar | familiar |
| nervos | nerves |
| respirar | to breathe |
| fundo | deep / deeply |
| lembrar-se | to remember |
| um passo de cada vez | one step at a time |
| tolerasse | could tolerate (imperfect subjunctive of tolerar) |
| tolerar | to tolerate / to withstand |
| ao mesmo tempo | at the same time |
| suficiente | enough / sufficient |
| dezasseis | sixteen |
| acelerar | to accelerate / to speed up |
| protestou | protested (preterite of protestar) |
| cedeu | gave in / gave way (preterite of ceder) |
| cruzou | crossed (preterite of cruzar) |
| linha de chegada | finish line |
| duas horas | two hours |
| minutos | minutes |
| conseguiste | you did it / you managed (preterite of conseguir) |
| telemóvel | mobile phone |
| ligou | called / phoned (preterite of ligar) |
| regresso | return |
| tentei | I tried (preterite of tentar) |
| corrigiu | corrected (preterite of corrigir) |
| sorriso | smile |
| resultou | worked / turned out (preterite of resultar) |
| desta vez | this time |
| pernas | legs |
| pesadas | heavy (feminine plural) |
| coração | heart |
| leve | light (adjective) |
| perceber | to understand / to realise |
| tanto | so much |
| mudar | to change |
| tão | so (adverb of degree) |
| pouco | little / short (amount) |
| nevoeiro | fog / mist |
| Tejo | Tagus (river in Lisbon) |
| desde | since / from |
| início | beginning / start |
| sair | to go out / to start off |
| erro | mistake / error |
| clássico | classic |
| maratonista | marathon runner |
| ansiosos | anxious (masculine plural) |
| pontes | bridges |
| ignorar | to ignore |
| ultrapassavam | were overtaking (imperfect of ultrapassar) |
| ouvir | to hear / to listen |
| apenas | only / just |
| respiração | breathing |
| som | sound |
| sapatilhas | trainers / running shoes (plural) |
| sapatilha | trainer / running shoe |
| asfalto | asphalt / tarmac |
| horas | hours |
| dezoito | eighteen |
| recorde | record (personal best) |
| dela | hers / of her |
| inteiramente | entirely / completely |
| conquistar | to earn / to achieve / to conquer |
| conquistada | earned / conquered (feminine past participle) |
| tentativas | attempts / tries |
| recomeços | fresh starts / new beginnings |
| recomeço | fresh start / new beginning |
| multidão | crowd |
| entre | among / between |
| apertando | shaking / squeezing (gerund of apertar) |
| mão | hand |
| chegaste | you arrived / you made it (preterite of chegar) |
| desistir | to give up / to quit |
| muitas vezes | many times / often |
| continuar | to continue / to keep going |
| às vezes | sometimes |
| tudo | everything |
| resolver | to solve / to resolve |
| problema | problem |
| sozinha | alone (feminine) |
| sempre | always |
| uma vez | once / one time |
| marcação | appointment / booking |
| ganhar | to win |
| recuperação | recovery |
| ligar | to call / to phone |
| ontem | yesterday |
| médico | doctor |
| falar | to speak / to talk |
| tentáramos | we had tried (pluperfect of tentar) |
| chegaram | arrived / came (preterite of chegar, 3rd plural) |
| tentaremos | we will try (future of tentar) |
| tentávamos | we were trying / we used to try (imperfect of tentar) |
| não | no / not |
| sua | his / her (feminine possessive) |
| assim | like this / in this way |
| só | only / just / alone |
| nunca | never |
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