Chapter 12 of A Desperate Character and Other Stories is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of A Desperate Character and Other Stories is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place. ‘Sit down. Well, I’m going to give you a talking to. I’ve wanted to get hold of you this long while.’ Pyetushkov sank into a chair.
Chapter 12 of A Desperate Character and Other Stories is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
object formed by a mold
From this reading “‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.”
throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading “‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.”
past form of “growl” — to utter or emit low dull rumbling sounds
From this reading “‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.”
of greater importance or stature or rank
From this reading “‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.”
inflected form of “sink” — fall or descend to a lower place or level
From this reading “Pyetushkov sank into a chair.”
be seated
From this reading “‘Sit down.”
agitating a liquid with an implement
From this reading “‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.”
an exchange of ideas via conversation
From this reading “Well, I’m going to give you a talking to.”
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 ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
object formed by a mold
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading Pyetushkov sank into a chair.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading ‘Sit down.
opinion or judgment
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading I’ve wanted to get hold of you this long while.’
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading Well, I’m going to give you a talking to.
throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
the act of departing
From this reading Well, I’m going to give you a talking to.
past form of “growl” — to utter or emit low dull rumbling sounds
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading I’ve wanted to get hold of you this long while.’
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Well, I’m going to give you a talking to.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I’ve wanted to get hold of you this long while.’
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Pyetushkov sank into a chair.
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 I’ve wanted to get hold of you this long while.’
of greater importance or stature or rank
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
inflected form of “sink” — fall or descend to a lower place or level
From this reading Pyetushkov sank into a chair.
(used especially of glances) directed to one side with or as if with doubt or suspicion or envy
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
be seated
From this reading ‘Sit down.
agitating a liquid with an implement
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
an exchange of ideas via conversation
From this reading Well, I’m going to give you a talking to.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading I’ve wanted to get hold of you this long while.’
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Well, I’m going to give you a talking to.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading ‘Aha! he’s come!’ growled the major, casting a sidelong glance out of his pewtery eyes upon Pyetushkov, and not stirring from his place.
desired or wished for or sought
From this reading I’ve wanted to get hold of you this long while.’
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading Well, I’m going to give you a talking to.
during the time that
From this reading I’ve wanted to get hold of you this long while.’
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Well, I’m going to give you a talking to.
Chapter 12 of A Desperate Character and Other Stories by Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev holds 409 sentences, grouped into 82 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 12 holds 409 sentences of A Desperate Character and Other Stories, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of A Desperate Character and Other Stories by Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 409 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 12 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 Desperate Character and Other Stories by Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4914 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #8871 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #8871, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 409 minutes of reading across 983 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Desperate Character and Other Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of A Desperate Character and Other Stories 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 Desperate Character and Other Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
