Chapter 13 of A Gentleman of Leisure is here in full — 402 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIII
Chapter 13 of A Gentleman of Leisure is here in full — 402 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A glance at Lord Dreever enlightened her. That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker. He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion. She pitied him sincerely. So he had not told his uncle the news yet!
Chapter 13 of A Gentleman of Leisure is here in full — 402 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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 structural member used to stiffen a framework
From this reading “He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion.”
a thin crisp wafer made of flour and water with or without leavening and shortening; unsweetened or semisweet
From this reading “That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.”
having knowledge and spiritual insight
From this reading “A glance at Lord Dreever enlightened her.”
a violent release of energy caused by a chemical or nuclear reaction
From this reading “He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion.”
inflected form of “pity” — share the suffering of
From this reading “She pitied him sincerely.”
with sincerity; without pretense
From this reading “She pitied him sincerely.”
showing fear and lack of confidence
From this reading “That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.”
(geology) the mechanical process of wearing or grinding something down (as by particles washing over it)
From this reading “That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.”
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.
In this reading “That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.”
In this reading “A glance at Lord Dreever enlightened her.”
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 glance at Lord Dreever enlightened her.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading A glance at Lord Dreever enlightened her.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion.
a structural member used to stiffen a framework
From this reading He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion.
a young person of either sex
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
a thin crisp wafer made of flour and water with or without leavening and shortening; unsweetened or semisweet
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
a living organism characterized by voluntary movement
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A glance at Lord Dreever enlightened her.
having knowledge and spiritual insight
From this reading A glance at Lord Dreever enlightened her.
a violent release of energy caused by a chemical or nuclear reaction
From this reading He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion.
throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading A glance at Lord Dreever enlightened her.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading So he had not told his uncle the news yet!
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading A glance at Lord Dreever enlightened her.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading She pitied him sincerely.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading So he had not told his uncle the news yet!
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
terms referring to the Judeo-Christian God
From this reading A glance at Lord Dreever enlightened her.
very unhappy; full of misery
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
information about recent and important events
From this reading So he had not told his uncle the news yet!
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading So he had not told his uncle the news yet!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
inflected form of “pity” — share the suffering of
From this reading She pitied him sincerely.
cause to move by pulling
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She pitied him sincerely.
with sincerity; without pretense
From this reading She pitied him sincerely.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading So he had not told his uncle the news yet!
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
showing fear and lack of confidence
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading So he had not told his uncle the news yet!
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading So he had not told his uncle the news yet!
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading He seemed to be bracing himself up for an explosion.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
(geology) the mechanical process of wearing or grinding something down (as by particles washing over it)
From this reading That miserable creature was wearing the air of a timid child about to pull a large cracker.
but in spite of that
From this reading So he had not told his uncle the news yet!
Chapter 13 of A Gentleman of Leisure by P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse holds 402 sentences, grouped into 81 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 13 holds 402 sentences of A Gentleman of Leisure, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 13 of A Gentleman of Leisure by P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 402 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 13 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 Gentleman of Leisure by P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6471 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #65172 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #65172, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 539 minutes of reading across 1295 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Gentleman of Leisure section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 16 chapters of A Gentleman of Leisure 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 Gentleman of Leisure, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
