Chapter VII of A lady in black, “A Strange Fancy,” is here in full — 179 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter VII
Chapter VII of A lady in black, “A Strange Fancy,” is here in full — 179 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“What was that?” asked Mabin with a shiver. She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come. “A cat, most likely,” answered Rudolph. But Mabin shook her head. “I saw something,” whispered she.
Chapter VII of A lady in black, “A Strange Fancy,” is here in full — 179 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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.
feline mammal usually having thick soft fur and no ability to roar: domestic cats; wildcats
From this reading ““A cat, most likely,” answered Rudolph.”
as a matter of instinct
From this reading “She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.”
has a good chance of being the case or of coming about
From this reading ““A cat, most likely,” answered Rudolph.”
sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading “She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.”
the stealing of cattle
From this reading “She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.”
tremble convulsively, as from fear or excitement
From this reading ““What was that?” asked Mabin with a shiver.”
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading “She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.”
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading ““I saw something,” whispered she.”
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 “She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.”
In this reading ““A cat, most likely,” answered Rudolph.”
In this reading “She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.”
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 “What was that?” asked Mabin with a shiver.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading “A cat, most likely,” answered Rudolph.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “What was that?” asked Mabin with a shiver.
the two together, not just one
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But Mabin shook her head.
feline mammal usually having thick soft fur and no ability to roar: domestic cats; wildcats
From this reading “A cat, most likely,” answered Rudolph.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading But Mabin shook her head.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading But Mabin shook her head.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I saw something,” whispered she.
as a matter of instinct
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
has a good chance of being the case or of coming about
From this reading “A cat, most likely,” answered Rudolph.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “What was that?” asked Mabin with a shiver.
used to form the superlative
From this reading “A cat, most likely,” answered Rudolph.
sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
the stealing of cattle
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
cut with a saw
From this reading “I saw something,” whispered she.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
tremble convulsively, as from fear or excitement
From this reading “What was that?” asked Mabin with a shiver.
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading But Mabin shook her head.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading “I saw something,” whispered she.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “What was that?” asked Mabin with a shiver.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
in the direction of
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “What was that?” asked Mabin with a shiver.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “What was that?” asked Mabin with a shiver.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading She and Rudolph had both turned instinctively toward the spot from which the rustling noise had come.
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading “I saw something,” whispered she.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “What was that?” asked Mabin with a shiver.
Chapter 7 of A lady in black by Florence Warden holds 179 sentences, grouped into 36 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 7 holds 179 sentences of A lady in black, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of A lady in black by Florence Warden exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 179 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 7 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 lady in black by Florence Warden on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2947 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #72314 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #72314, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 245 minutes of reading across 590 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A lady in black section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 15 chapters of A lady in black 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 lady in black, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
