Chapter 4 of A Practical Novelist is here in full — 112 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of A Practical Novelist is here in full — 112 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel. You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.' 'Yes, Henry. Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man. He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
Chapter 4 of A Practical Novelist is here in full — 112 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/22 · 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.
showing self-interest and shrewdness in dealing with others
From this reading “Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man.”
largest city in Scotland; a port on the Clyde in west central Scotland; one of the great shipbuilding centers of the world
From this reading “He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.”
pleasing in appearance especially by reason of conformity to ideals of form and proportion
From this reading “Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man.”
grass mowed and cured for use as fodder
From this reading “Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man.”
having or manifesting hope
From this reading “You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'”
the position of professor
From this reading “He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.”
in or at or to some place
From this reading “He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.”
the body of faculty and students at a university
From this reading “He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.”
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.
a teenager or a young adult male
In this reading “Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man.”
a relationship between two lovers
In this reading “You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'”
expect or hope for
In this reading “He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.”
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 HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading A HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
showing self-interest and shrewdness in dealing with others
From this reading Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man.
having ones attention or mind or energy engaged
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading A HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel.
at or to or toward the front
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion
From this reading Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man.
largest city in Scotland; a port on the Clyde in west central Scotland; one of the great shipbuilding centers of the world
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
pleasing in appearance especially by reason of conformity to ideals of form and proportion
From this reading Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man.
of behavior that is impressive and ambitious in scale or scope
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
grass mowed and cured for use as fodder
From this reading Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
of comparatively great physical weight or density
From this reading A HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel.
a unit of inductance in which an induced electromotive force of one volt is produced when the current is varied at the rate of one ampere per second
From this reading 'Yes, Henry.
having or manifesting hope
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel.
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading A HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel.
plural of “look” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading A HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading A HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
give an exhibition of to an interested audience
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
the position of professor
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
express in words
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
in or at or to some place
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
understood in a certain way; made sense of
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading A HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading A HEAVY FATHER 'Now, Jane, let me understand this about Muriel.
the body of faculty and students at a university
From this reading He has taken one of the big bursaries in Glasgow University, and looks forward to a professorship somewhere.
precisely as stated
From this reading Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man.
(usually of children) someone who behaves in a manner that the speaker believes is correct
From this reading Frank Hay is a very good-looking, clever, well-behaved young man.
in the company of; together with
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
an affirmative
From this reading 'Yes, Henry.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading You say she is at present engaged in a grand love affair with some young hopeful or other.'
Chapter 4 of A Practical Novelist by John Davidson holds 112 sentences, grouped into 23 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 4 holds 112 sentences of A Practical Novelist, unabridged, divided into 23 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of A Practical Novelist by John Davidson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 112 sentences, grouped into 23 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 23 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 23 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 4 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 Practical Novelist by John Davidson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1813 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #35313 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #35313, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 151 minutes of reading across 363 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Practical Novelist section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of A Practical Novelist 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 Practical Novelist, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
