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A Dream of John Ball
A Dream of John Ball

Chapter I · Chapter 1

Chapter 1 of A Dream of John Ball is here in full — 63 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for A Dream of John Ball
Context Illustration Reading 1/12 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.
I mean when I am asleep.
This dream is as it were a present of an architectural peep-show.
I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.
Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

A Dream of John Ball

Chapter I · Chapter 1

Chapter 1 of A Dream of John Ball is here in full — 63 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/12 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.
Line 2
I mean when I am asleep.
Line 3
This dream is as it were a present of an architectural peep-show.
Line 4
I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.
Line 5
Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

Learner Dictionary

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.

Dream noun US /driːm/

A series of thoughts, images, or emotions during sleep.

From this reading “Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.”

All words in this reading · 80

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.

a

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

about

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

absurdly

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

all

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

am

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

amid

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

an

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading This dream is as it were a present of an architectural peep-show.

and

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

Anne

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

architectural

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading This dream is as it were a present of an architectural peep-show.

as

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading This dream is as it were a present of an architectural peep-show.

asleep

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I mean when I am asleep.

awake

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

beautiful

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

Billy

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

building

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

but

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

by

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

clear

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

clearing

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

clearly

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

degradations

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

destroying

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

detail

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

dreamnounUS /driːm/

A series of thoughts, images, or emotions during sleep.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

dreams

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

earlier

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

Elizabethan

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

for

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

fourteenth-century

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

fretting

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

happens

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

house

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

I

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

if

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

in

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

is

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading This dream is as it were a present of an architectural peep-show.

it

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading This dream is as it were a present of an architectural peep-show.

its

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

later

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

made

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

marring

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

matters

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

mean

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I mean when I am asleep.

much

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

myself

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

new

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

noble

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

not

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

occasion

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

of

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading This dream is as it were a present of an architectural peep-show.

often

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

old

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

once

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

or

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

peep-show

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading This dream is as it were a present of an architectural peep-show.

pleasant

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

present

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

Queen

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

quite

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

reasonable

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

rewarded

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

sandy

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

scrap

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

see

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

Silly

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

so

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

some

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

Sometimes

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

Sussex

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

the

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

This

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading This dream is as it were a present of an architectural peep-show.

unasked-for

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Sometimes I am rewarded for fretting myself so much about present matters by a quite unasked-for pleasant dream.

vaguely

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

Victoria

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

village

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

were

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading This dream is as it were a present of an architectural peep-show.

when

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I mean when I am asleep.

with

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I see some beautiful and noble building new made, as it were for the occasion, as clearly as if I were awake; not vaguely or absurdly, as often happens in dreams, but with all the detail clear and reasonable.

woodlands

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Some Elizabethan house with its scrap of earlier fourteenth-century building, and its later degradations of Queen Anne and Silly Billy and Victoria, marring but not destroying it, in an old village once a clearing amid the sandy woodlands of Sussex.

Chapter 1 of A Dream of John Ball by William Morris holds 63 sentences, grouped into 13 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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.

What does chapter 1 of A Dream of John Ball contain?

Chapter 1 holds 63 sentences of A Dream of John Ball, unabridged, divided into 13 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 1 of A Dream of John Ball by William Morris exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 63 sentences, grouped into 13 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.

How do I study chapter 1 of A Dream of John Ball?

Work through the 13 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 13 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.

Can chapter 1 be read aloud to me?

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.

Questions about reading A Dream of John Ball

Common questions about reading A Dream of John Ball by William Morris on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of A Dream of John Ball?

Yes. All 824 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #357 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of A Dream of John Ball is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #357, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does A Dream of John Ball take to read?

About 68 minutes of reading across 165 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read A Dream of John Ball section by section

How to work through A Dream of John Ball section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 12 chapters of A Dream of John Ball to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in A Dream of John Ball

Words and structures a reader meets early in A Dream of John Ball, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Sometimes
A word that appears in the opening chapter of A Dream of John Ball; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Rewarded
A word that appears in the opening chapter of A Dream of John Ball; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Fretting
A word that appears in the opening chapter of A Dream of John Ball; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Myself
A word that appears in the opening chapter of A Dream of John Ball; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.