Chapter 1 of A Girl of the People is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of A Girl of the People is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"You have kept us waiting an age! Come along, Bet, do." "She ain't going to funk it, surely!" "No, no, not she,--she's a good 'un, Bet is,--come along, Bet. Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
Chapter 1 of A Girl of the People is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/36 · 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.
maintain with or as if with a bet
From this reading “Come along, Bet, do."”
a place off to the side of an area
From this reading “Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."”
a state of nervous depression
From this reading “"She ain't going to funk it, surely!"”
to move or force, especially in an effort to get something open
From this reading “Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."”
a guided missile fired from land or shipboard against an airborne target
From this reading “Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."”
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading “"She ain't going to funk it, surely!"”
United States civil rights leader (1901-1981)
From this reading “Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."”
United States writer of detective novels (1888-1939)
From this reading “Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."”
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 "No, no, not she,--she's a good 'un, Bet is,--come along, Bet.
how long something has existed
From this reading "You have kept us waiting an age!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "She ain't going to funk it, surely!"
following the length of something from one end toward the other
From this reading Come along, Bet, do."
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading "You have kept us waiting an age!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
maintain with or as if with a bet
From this reading Come along, Bet, do."
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Come along, Bet, do."
a place off to the side of an area
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading Come along, Bet, do."
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
a state of nervous depression
From this reading "She ain't going to funk it, surely!"
the act of departing
From this reading "She ain't going to funk it, surely!"
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading "No, no, not she,--she's a good 'un, Bet is,--come along, Bet.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "You have kept us waiting an age!
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "No, no, not she,--she's a good 'un, Bet is,--come along, Bet.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "She ain't going to funk it, surely!"
to move or force, especially in an effort to get something open
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading "You have kept us waiting an age!
not any; not one
From this reading "No, no, not she,--she's a good 'un, Bet is,--come along, Bet.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "No, no, not she,--she's a good 'un, Bet is,--come along, Bet.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
a guided missile fired from land or shipboard against an airborne target
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
plural of “say” — the chance to speak
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "She ain't going to funk it, surely!"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "No, no, not she,--she's a good 'un, Bet is,--come along, Bet.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading "She ain't going to funk it, surely!"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
in or at that place or location
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "She ain't going to funk it, surely!"
an organization of independent states formed in 1945 to promote international peace and security
From this reading "No, no, not she,--she's a good 'un, Bet is,--come along, Bet.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "You have kept us waiting an age!
the act of waiting (remaining inactive in one place while expecting something)
From this reading "You have kept us waiting an age!
United States civil rights leader (1901-1981)
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
United States writer of detective novels (1888-1939)
From this reading Joe Wilkins is waiting for us round the corner, and he says Sam is to be there, and Jimmy, and Hester Wright: do come along, now."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You have kept us waiting an age!
Chapter 1 of A Girl of the People by L. T. Meade holds 180 sentences, grouped into 36 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.
Chapter 1 holds 180 sentences of A Girl of the People, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of A Girl of the People by L. T. Meade exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 180 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 Girl of the People by L. T. Meade on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3317 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #6142 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #6142, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 276 minutes of reading across 664 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Girl of the People section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of A Girl of the People 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 Girl of the People, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
