Chapter 3 of A Question of Marriage is here in full — 440 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter III
Chapter 3 of A Question of Marriage is here in full — 440 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!" The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine. Vanna smiled, and put an incredulous question: "Poor, puzzled darling. It is trying for you.
Chapter 3 of A Question of Marriage is here in full — 440 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/88 · 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.
a lady's bedroom or private sitting room
From this reading “The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.”
a special loved one
From this reading “"Poor, puzzled darling.”
something or someone that causes anxiety; a source of unhappiness
From this reading “"I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"”
not disposed or willing to believe; unbelieving
From this reading “Vanna smiled, and put an incredulous question:”
possessive form of “jean” — a coarse durable twill-weave cotton fabric
From this reading “The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.”
filled with bewilderment
From this reading “"Poor, puzzled darling.”
in a thoughtful manner
From this reading “"I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"”
on a floor above
From this reading “The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.”
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 “"I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"”
In this reading “The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.”
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 "I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading "I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"
Having no one else present.
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Vanna smiled, and put an incredulous question:
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
declared publicly; made widely known
From this reading "I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"
any thing at all
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
outward or visible aspect of a person or thing
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
a lady's bedroom or private sitting room
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
a special loved one
From this reading "Poor, puzzled darling.
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading It is trying for you.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"
something or someone that causes anxiety; a source of unhappiness
From this reading "I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"
form a mental image of something that is not present or that is not the case
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
not disposed or willing to believe; unbelieving
From this reading Vanna smiled, and put an incredulous question:
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It is trying for you.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It is trying for you.
possessive form of “jean” — a coarse durable twill-weave cotton fabric
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
used to form the comparative of some adjectives and adverbs
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading "Poor, puzzled darling.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading Vanna smiled, and put an incredulous question:
filled with bewilderment
From this reading "Poor, puzzled darling.
challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading Vanna smiled, and put an incredulous question:
(of persons) having the torso erect and legs bent with the body supported on the buttocks
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"
past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading Vanna smiled, and put an incredulous question:
a state of acute pain
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading "I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"
in a thoughtful manner
From this reading "I think," she announced thoughtfully, "I'm almost sure, I have a headache!"
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
hard to endure
From this reading It is trying for you.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
on a floor above
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Vanna smiled, and put an incredulous question:
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading The two girls were seated alone in the upstairs boudoir, and anything less suffering than Jean's appearance would have been difficult to imagine.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading It is trying for you.
Chapter 3 of A Question of Marriage by George de Horne, Mrs. Vaizey holds 440 sentences, grouped into 88 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 3 holds 440 sentences of A Question of Marriage, unabridged, divided into 88 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of A Question of Marriage by George de Horne, Mrs. Vaizey exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 440 sentences, grouped into 88 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 88 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 88 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 3 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 Question of Marriage by George de Horne, Mrs. Vaizey on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5165 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #32920 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #32920, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 430 minutes of reading across 1033 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Question of Marriage section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of A Question of Marriage 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 Question of Marriage, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
