Chapter 16 of A Beautiful Possibility is here in full — 198 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVI
Chapter 16 of A Beautiful Possibility is here in full — 198 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening. It's not a very long invitation. What dress will you wear?" "But you are engaged, Marion," said Evadne; "Wednesday evening, you know." "Yes," said Marion with a sigh, "it is awkward.
Chapter 16 of A Beautiful Possibility is here in full — 198 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5
These definitions explain words found in the current reading and keep every example grounded in its original sentence.
Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, and audio.
causing inconvenience
From this reading “"Yes," said Marion with a sigh, "it is awkward.”
one of a set of small pieces of stiff paper marked in various ways and used for playing games or for telling fortunes
From this reading “"An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.”
a request (spoken or written) to participate or be present or take part in something
From this reading “"An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.”
someone who is a member of the faculty at a college or university
From this reading “"An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.”
heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
From this reading “"Yes," said Marion with a sigh, "it is awkward.”
past form of “toss” — throw or toss with a light motion
From this reading “"An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.”
be dressed in
From this reading “What dress will you wear?"”
the fourth day of the week; the third working day
From this reading “"An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.”
Every word in these five lines is listed here, and every one of them can be played on its own.
Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
from one side of something to the other
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "But you are engaged, Marion," said Evadne; "Wednesday evening, you know."
causing inconvenience
From this reading "Yes," said Marion with a sigh, "it is awkward.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But you are engaged, Marion," said Evadne; "Wednesday evening, you know."
one of a set of small pieces of stiff paper marked in various ways and used for playing games or for telling fortunes
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
put on clothes
From this reading What dress will you wear?"
having ones attention or mind or energy engaged
From this reading "But you are engaged, Marion," said Evadne; "Wednesday evening, you know."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "But you are engaged, Marion," said Evadne; "Wednesday evening, you know."
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
of the highest quality or value
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
a request (spoken or written) to participate or be present or take part in something
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Yes," said Marion with a sigh, "it is awkward.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Yes," said Marion with a sigh, "it is awkward.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It's not a very long invitation.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "But you are engaged, Marion," said Evadne; "Wednesday evening, you know."
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading It's not a very long invitation.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It's not a very long invitation.
someone who is a member of the faculty at a college or university
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "But you are engaged, Marion," said Evadne; "Wednesday evening, you know."
heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
From this reading "Yes," said Marion with a sigh, "it is awkward.
a set of data arranged in rows and columns
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
past form of “toss” — throw or toss with a light motion
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
precisely as stated
From this reading It's not a very long invitation.
be dressed in
From this reading What dress will you wear?"
the fourth day of the week; the third working day
From this reading "An invitation to Professor Joliette's," and Isabelle tossed a gilt-edged card across the table to Marion; "Wednesday evening.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What dress will you wear?"
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading What dress will you wear?"
in the company of; together with
From this reading "Yes," said Marion with a sigh, "it is awkward.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes," said Marion with a sigh, "it is awkward.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading What dress will you wear?"
Chapter 16 of A Beautiful Possibility by Edith Ferguson Black holds 198 sentences, grouped into 40 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the source edition, unabridged, and the chapter records which sentences cover which part of the work so that nothing is dropped. Every word can be tapped for its pronunciation and dictionary entry.
Chapter 16 holds 198 sentences of A Beautiful Possibility, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of A Beautiful Possibility by Edith Ferguson Black exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 198 sentences, grouped into 40 sections of at most 5 sentences so that a reader can take the chapter in steady, finishable pieces. The chapter also stores a coverage record mapping every one of its sentences to a part of the work, which is how the edition demonstrates that no line was dropped.
Work through the 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 sections in this chapter is short enough to read once, hear once, and then re-read with the vocabulary in view. Tapping a word plays it alone and opens its dictionary entry with IPA, part of speech and meaning, so the reader is never forced to guess a pronunciation from spelling. Working section by section keeps a long chapter from becoming an undifferentiated wall of text, which is the usual reason a reader abandons a work of this period.
Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 16 can be played aloud in United States English.
Audio covers the whole chapter: any sentence can be played, and any single word within it can be played on its own. The voice uses United States English. For a work of this period that matters, because spelling is an unreliable guide to pronunciation for vocabulary that has fallen out of daily use, and a learner who guesses wrong tends to keep the error. Hearing the word in its own sentence, and then alone, settles it.
Common questions about reading A Beautiful Possibility by Edith Ferguson Black on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4543 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #10037 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #10037, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 378 minutes of reading across 909 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Beautiful Possibility section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of A Beautiful Possibility to begin.
Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.
Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in A Beautiful Possibility, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
