Chapter 14 of A Chambermaid's Diary is here in full — 439 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIV
Chapter 14 of A Chambermaid's Diary is here in full — 439 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"From Saint-Brieuc!" she repeated. "Then you are a Breton? Oh! I do not like the Bretons. They are obstinate and dirty."
Chapter 14 of A Chambermaid's Diary is here in full — 439 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/87 · 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.
a native or inhabitant of Brittany (especially one who speaks the Breton language)
From this reading “"Then you are a Breton?”
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading “They are obstinate and dirty."”
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “I do not like the Bretons.”
tenaciously unwilling or marked by tenacious unwillingness to yield
From this reading “They are obstinate and dirty."”
recurring again and again
From this reading “"From Saint-Brieuc!" she repeated.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
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 "Then you are a Breton?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading They are obstinate and dirty."
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Then you are a Breton?
a native or inhabitant of Brittany (especially one who speaks the Breton language)
From this reading "Then you are a Breton?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I do not like the Bretons.
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading They are obstinate and dirty."
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading I do not like the Bretons.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading "From Saint-Brieuc!" she repeated.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I do not like the Bretons.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading I do not like the Bretons.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading I do not like the Bretons.
tenaciously unwilling or marked by tenacious unwillingness to yield
From this reading They are obstinate and dirty."
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading Oh!
recurring again and again
From this reading "From Saint-Brieuc!" she repeated.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "From Saint-Brieuc!" she repeated.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "From Saint-Brieuc!" she repeated.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I do not like the Bretons.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading "Then you are a Breton?
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They are obstinate and dirty."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Then you are a Breton?
Chapter 14 of A Chambermaid's Diary by Octave Mirbeau holds 439 sentences, grouped into 88 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 14 holds 439 sentences of A Chambermaid's Diary, unabridged, divided into 88 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 14 of A Chambermaid's Diary by Octave Mirbeau exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 439 sentences, grouped into 88 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 88 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 88 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 14 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 Chambermaid's Diary by Octave Mirbeau on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7550 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #44303 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #44303, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1510 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Chambermaid's Diary section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 18 chapters of A Chambermaid's Diary 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 Chambermaid's Diary, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
