Chapter 17 of A Mummer's Wife is here in full — 384 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of A Mummer's Wife is here in full — 384 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
'Will you kindly give Mr. Lennox this letter? Has he arrived yet?' 'Yes, but he's busy for the moment. But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.' At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:
Chapter 17 of A Mummer's Wife is here in full — 384 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/76 · 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.
past form of “examine” — consider in detail and subject to an analysis in order to discover essential features or meaning
From this reading “But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'”
plural of “feature” — a prominent attribute or aspect of something
From this reading “But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'”
a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention
From this reading “But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'”
in a narrow manner; not allowing for exceptions
From this reading “But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'”
past form of “scream” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading “At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:”
changing location by moving back and forth
From this reading “At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:”
a building where theatrical performances or motion-picture shows can be presented
From this reading “But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'”
push forcefully
From this reading “At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:”
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 But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
past form of “add” — make an addition (to); join or combine or unite with others; increase the quality, quantity, size or scope of
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:
past form of “arrive” — reach a destination; arrive by movement or progress
From this reading Has he arrived yet?'
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:
actively or fully engaged or occupied
From this reading 'Yes, but he's busy for the moment.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading 'Yes, but he's busy for the moment.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:
past form of “examine” — consider in detail and subject to an analysis in order to discover essential features or meaning
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
accept an excuse for
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
plural of “feature” — a prominent attribute or aspect of something
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading 'Yes, but he's busy for the moment.
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading 'Will you kindly give Mr. Lennox this letter?
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Has he arrived yet?'
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Has he arrived yet?'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'Yes, but he's busy for the moment.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
showing or motivated by sympathy and understanding and generosity
From this reading 'Will you kindly give Mr. Lennox this letter?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'Will you kindly give Mr. Lennox this letter?
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading 'Will you kindly give Mr. Lennox this letter?
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
a particular point in time
From this reading 'Yes, but he's busy for the moment.
a form of address for a man
From this reading 'Will you kindly give Mr. Lennox this letter?
in a narrow manner; not allowing for exceptions
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
To move from a closed position.
From this reading At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:
past form of “scream” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:
changing location by moving back and forth
From this reading At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading 'Yes, but he's busy for the moment.
a building where theatrical performances or motion-picture shows can be presented
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading 'Will you kindly give Mr. Lennox this letter?
push forcefully
From this reading At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading At that moment the swinging door was thrust open, and the call-boy screamed:
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading 'Will you kindly give Mr. Lennox this letter?
an affirmative
From this reading 'Yes, but he's busy for the moment.
but in spite of that
From this reading Has he arrived yet?'
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading 'Will you kindly give Mr. Lennox this letter?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But,' the man added, as he examined Kate's features narrowly, 'you'll excuse me, I made a mistake; Mr. Lennox isn't in the theatre.'
Chapter 17 of A Mummer's Wife by George Moore holds 384 sentences, grouped into 77 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 17 holds 384 sentences of A Mummer's Wife, unabridged, divided into 77 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of A Mummer's Wife by George Moore exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 384 sentences, grouped into 77 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 77 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 77 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 17 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 Mummer's Wife by George Moore on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6924 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #7508 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #7508, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 577 minutes of reading across 1385 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Mummer's Wife section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of A Mummer's Wife 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 Mummer's Wife, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
