Chapter 1 of A Chance Acquaintance is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of A Chance Acquaintance is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_A Chance Acquaintance._ BY W. D. HOWELLS. Late Ticknor & Fields, and Fields, Osgood, & Co. University Press: Welch, Bigelow, & Co., Cambridge. A CHANCE ACQUAINTANCE. UP THE SAGUENAY.
Chapter 1 of A Chance Acquaintance is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 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.
personal knowledge or information about someone or something
From this reading “_A Chance Acquaintance._ BY W. D. HOWELLS.”
a university in England
From this reading “University Press: Welch, Bigelow, & Co., Cambridge.”
a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading “_A Chance Acquaintance._ BY W. D. HOWELLS.”
United States comedian and film actor (1880-1946)
From this reading “Late Ticknor & Fields, and Fields, Osgood, & Co.”
United States writer and editor (1837-1920)
From this reading “_A Chance Acquaintance._ BY W. D. HOWELLS.”
exert pressure or force to or upon
From this reading “University Press: Welch, Bigelow, & Co., Cambridge.”
the body of faculty and students at a university
From this reading “University Press: Welch, Bigelow, & Co., Cambridge.”
cheat by avoiding payment of a gambling debt
From this reading “University Press: Welch, Bigelow, & Co., Cambridge.”
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 _A Chance Acquaintance._ BY W. D. HOWELLS.
personal knowledge or information about someone or something
From this reading _A Chance Acquaintance._ BY W. D. HOWELLS.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Late Ticknor & Fields, and Fields, Osgood, & Co.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading University Press: Welch, Bigelow, & Co., Cambridge.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading _A Chance Acquaintance._ BY W. D. HOWELLS.
a university in England
From this reading University Press: Welch, Bigelow, & Co., Cambridge.
a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading _A Chance Acquaintance._ BY W. D. HOWELLS.
an odorless very poisonous gas that is a product of incomplete combustion of carbon
From this reading Late Ticknor & Fields, and Fields, Osgood, & Co.
a fat-soluble vitamin that prevents rickets
From this reading _A Chance Acquaintance._ BY W. D. HOWELLS.
United States comedian and film actor (1880-1946)
From this reading Late Ticknor & Fields, and Fields, Osgood, & Co.
United States writer and editor (1837-1920)
From this reading _A Chance Acquaintance._ BY W. D. HOWELLS.
being or occurring at an advanced period of time or after a usual or expected time
From this reading Late Ticknor & Fields, and Fields, Osgood, & Co.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Late Ticknor & Fields, and Fields, Osgood, & Co.
exert pressure or force to or upon
From this reading University Press: Welch, Bigelow, & Co., Cambridge.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading UP THE SAGUENAY.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading UP THE SAGUENAY.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Late Ticknor & Fields, and Fields, Osgood, & Co.
the body of faculty and students at a university
From this reading University Press: Welch, Bigelow, & Co., Cambridge.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading UP THE SAGUENAY.
a heavy grey-white metallic element; the pure form is used mainly in electrical applications; it is found in several ores including wolframite and scheelite
From this reading _A Chance Acquaintance._ BY W. D. HOWELLS.
cheat by avoiding payment of a gambling debt
From this reading University Press: Welch, Bigelow, & Co., Cambridge.
Chapter 1 of A Chance Acquaintance by William Dean Howells holds 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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 1 holds 416 sentences of A Chance Acquaintance, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of A Chance Acquaintance by William Dean Howells exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 1 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 Chance Acquaintance by William Dean Howells on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2456 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #18555 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #18555, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 204 minutes of reading across 492 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Chance Acquaintance section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of A Chance Acquaintance 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 Chance Acquaintance, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
