Chapter 38 of A Poached Peerage is here in full — 100 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXVIII
Chapter 38 of A Poached Peerage is here in full — 100 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation. He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him. "Let go, ma'am," he said reassuringly. "It's all right now. I'll rake the fire out."
Chapter 38 of A Poached Peerage is here in full — 100 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/20 · 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.
make fit for, or change to suit a new purpose
From this reading “Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.”
a person who captures and holds people or animals
From this reading “He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.”
a woman of refinement
From this reading “"Let go, ma'am," he said reassuringly.”
(used especially of ideas or principles) deeply rooted; firmly fixed or held
From this reading “He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.”
engaged in a profession or engaging in as a profession or means of livelihood
From this reading “Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.”
move through with or as if with a rake
From this reading “I'll rake the fire out."”
in a reassuring manner
From this reading “"Let go, ma'am," he said reassuringly.”
release, as from one's grip
From this reading “He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.”
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.
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
In this reading “Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.”
In this reading “He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.”
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 He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
make fit for, or change to suit a new purpose
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading "It's all right now.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
the two together, not just one
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
a person who captures and holds people or animals
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
a British peer of the highest rank
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
start firing a weapon
From this reading I'll rake the fire out."
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading "Let go, ma'am," he said reassuringly.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I'll rake the fire out."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "It's all right now.
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading "Let go, ma'am," he said reassuringly.
a woman of refinement
From this reading "Let go, ma'am," he said reassuringly.
a form of address for a man
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading "It's all right now.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
on one occasion
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading I'll rake the fire out."
(used especially of ideas or principles) deeply rooted; firmly fixed or held
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
past form of “proceed” — continue talking
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
engaged in a profession or engaging in as a profession or means of livelihood
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
the characteristic of doing things without delay
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
move through with or as if with a rake
From this reading I'll rake the fire out."
in a reassuring manner
From this reading "Let go, ma'am," he said reassuringly.
release, as from one's grip
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
precisely, exactly
From this reading "It's all right now.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Let go, ma'am," he said reassuringly.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
the general state of things; the combination of circumstances at a given time
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
past form of “suggest” — make a proposal, declare a plan for something
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
one of a series of ridges that moves across the surface of a liquid (especially across a large body of water)
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Mr. Doutfire with professional promptitude at once proceeded to adapt himself to the situation.
moving in a twisting or snake-like or wormlike fashion
From this reading He planted himself in business-like fashion before the wriggling duke, and with a wave of both hands, suggested to his captor that she should release him.
Chapter 38 of A Poached Peerage by William, Sir Magnay holds 100 sentences, grouped into 20 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 38 holds 100 sentences of A Poached Peerage, unabridged, divided into 20 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 38 of A Poached Peerage by William, Sir Magnay exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 100 sentences, grouped into 20 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 20 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 20 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 38 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 Poached Peerage by William, Sir Magnay on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5783 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34088 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34088, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 481 minutes of reading across 1157 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Poached Peerage section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of A Poached Peerage 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 Poached Peerage, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
