Chapter 7 of A Prefect's Uncle is here in full — 425 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of A Prefect's Uncle is here in full — 425 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
'Suppose he asks why?' 'I shall say I can't possibly imagine.' 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all. Merely a diplomatic evasion. I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
Chapter 7 of A Prefect's Uncle is here in full — 425 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/85 · 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.
third-person singular of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “'Suppose he asks why?'”
relating to or characteristic of diplomacy
From this reading “Merely a diplomatic evasion.”
a statement that is not literally false but that cleverly avoids an unpleasant truth
From this reading “Merely a diplomatic evasion.”
form a mental image of something that is not present or that is not the case
From this reading “'I shall say I can't possibly imagine.'”
plural of “lie” — a statement that deviates from or perverts the truth
From this reading “'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.”
by chance
From this reading “'I shall say I can't possibly imagine.'”
plural of “secret” — something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)
From this reading “I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'”
weep convulsively
From this reading “I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'”
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 Merely a diplomatic evasion.
(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 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
third-person singular of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading 'Suppose he asks why?'
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.
confined by bonds
From this reading I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'I shall say I can't possibly imagine.'
relating to or characteristic of diplomacy
From this reading Merely a diplomatic evasion.
a statement that is not literally false but that cleverly avoids an unpleasant truth
From this reading Merely a diplomatic evasion.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
the act of departing
From this reading 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading 'Suppose he asks why?'
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading 'I shall say I can't possibly imagine.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.
form a mental image of something that is not present or that is not the case
From this reading 'I shall say I can't possibly imagine.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
plural of “lie” — a statement that deviates from or perverts the truth
From this reading 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.
and nothing more
From this reading Merely a diplomatic evasion.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
by chance
From this reading 'I shall say I can't possibly imagine.'
express in words
From this reading 'I shall say I can't possibly imagine.'
plural of “secret” — something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)
From this reading I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading 'I shall say I can't possibly imagine.'
weep convulsively
From this reading I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
express a supposition
From this reading 'Suppose he asks why?'
express in words
From this reading 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.
a man's sleeveless garment worn underneath a coat
From this reading I'm not bound to go and sob out my secrets on Jephson's waistcoat.'
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading 'Suppose he asks why?'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'Oh, well, if you're going to tell lies--' 'Not at all.
Chapter 7 of A Prefect's Uncle by P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse holds 425 sentences, grouped into 85 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 425 sentences of A Prefect's Uncle, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of A Prefect's Uncle by P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 425 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 Prefect's Uncle by P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3360 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #6985 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #6985, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 280 minutes of reading across 672 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Prefect's Uncle section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of A Prefect's Uncle 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 Prefect's Uncle, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
