Chapter 11 of A Budget of Christmas Tales by Charles is here in full — 415 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XI
Chapter 11 of A Budget of Christmas Tales by Charles is here in full — 415 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them. "Who is it, Abby?" "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms. "Don't you remember me? Mamma says you used to love me."
Chapter 11 of A Budget of Christmas Tales by Charles is here in full — 415 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
possessive form of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading “"Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.”
taking a series of rhythmical steps (and movements) in time to music
From this reading “"Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.”
a female grandchild
From this reading “"Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.”
express greetings upon meeting someone
From this reading “"Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.”
informal terms for a mother
From this reading “Mamma says you used to love me."”
plural of “palm” — the inner surface of the hand from the wrist to the base of the fingers
From this reading “"Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.”
yielding readily to pressure or weight
From this reading “"Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.”
lean and wrinkled by shrinkage as from age or illness
From this reading “"Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.”
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 "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Who is it, Abby?"
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
a young person of either sex
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
possessive form of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
taking a series of rhythmical steps (and movements) in time to music
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
a female grandchild
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
express greetings upon meeting someone
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Who is it, Abby?"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Who is it, Abby?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading Mamma says you used to love me."
informal terms for a mother
From this reading Mamma says you used to love me."
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Don't you remember me?
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
plural of “palm” — the inner surface of the hand from the wrist to the base of the fingers
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
To recall to mind.
From this reading "Don't you remember me?
plural of “say” — the chance to speak
From this reading Mamma says you used to love me."
yielding readily to pressure or weight
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
employed in accomplishing something
From this reading Mamma says you used to love me."
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading "Don't I hear a child's voice?" he asked, as Eva came dancing out to greet them.
which person or people
From this reading "Who is it, Abby?"
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
lean and wrinkled by shrinkage as from age or illness
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Don't you remember me?
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Why, it's your own little granddaughter Eva," cried the child, clasping his withered hand in her two soft palms.
Chapter 11 of A Budget of Christmas Tales by Charles by Charles [Contributor] Dickens holds 415 sentences, grouped into 83 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 11 holds 415 sentences of A Budget of Christmas Tales by Charles, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of A Budget of Christmas Tales by Charles by Charles [Contributor] Dickens exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 415 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 11 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 Budget of Christmas Tales by Charles by Charles [Contributor] Dickens on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5351 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #28198 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #28198, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 445 minutes of reading across 1071 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Budget of Christmas Tales by Charles section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of A Budget of Christmas Tales by Charles 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 Budget of Christmas Tales by Charles, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
