Chapter 15 of A Rough Shaking is here in full — 237 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of A Rough Shaking is here in full — 237 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
JUSTIFIABLE BURGLARY. Tommy rose rubbing his forehead, and crying quietly. He did not dare say a word. It was well for him he did not. Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
Chapter 15 of A Rough Shaking is here in full — 237 sentences across 48 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/47 · 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.
consider or hold as true
From this reading “Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.”
the psychological state of being irritated or annoyed
From this reading “Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.”
entering a building unlawfully with intent to commit a felony or to steal valuable property
From this reading “JUSTIFIABLE BURGLARY.”
demanding attention
From this reading “Tommy rose rubbing his forehead, and crying quietly.”
capable of being justified
From this reading “JUSTIFIABLE BURGLARY.”
a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling
From this reading “Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.”
full of difficulty or confusion or bewilderment
From this reading “Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.”
the resistance encountered when one body is moved in contact with another
From this reading “Tommy rose rubbing his forehead, and crying quietly.”
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 did not dare say a word.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
consider or hold as true
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Tommy rose rubbing his forehead, and crying quietly.
the psychological state of being irritated or annoyed
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
eagerly desirous
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
a very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
entering a building unlawfully with intent to commit a felony or to steal valuable property
From this reading JUSTIFIABLE BURGLARY.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
demanding attention
From this reading Tommy rose rubbing his forehead, and crying quietly.
take upon oneself; act presumptuously, without permission
From this reading He did not dare say a word.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading He did not dare say a word.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading It was well for him he did not.
the part of the face above the eyes
From this reading Tommy rose rubbing his forehead, and crying quietly.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He did not dare say a word.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading It was well for him he did not.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Tommy rose rubbing his forehead, and crying quietly.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was well for him he did not.
capable of being justified
From this reading JUSTIFIABLE BURGLARY.
a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
not any; not one
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading He did not dare say a word.
full of difficulty or confusion or bewilderment
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
with low volume
From this reading Tommy rose rubbing his forehead, and crying quietly.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading Tommy rose rubbing his forehead, and crying quietly.
the resistance encountered when one body is moved in contact with another
From this reading Tommy rose rubbing his forehead, and crying quietly.
express in words
From this reading He did not dare say a word.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Clare, perplexed and anxious about the baby, was in no mood to accept annoyance from Tommy.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Tommy rose rubbing his forehead, and crying quietly.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was well for him he did not.
(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 It was well for him he did not.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading He did not dare say a word.
Chapter 15 of A Rough Shaking by George MacDonald holds 237 sentences, grouped into 48 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 15 holds 237 sentences of A Rough Shaking, unabridged, divided into 48 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of A Rough Shaking by George MacDonald exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 237 sentences, grouped into 48 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 48 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 48 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 15 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 Rough Shaking by George MacDonald on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6421 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #8886 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #8886, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 535 minutes of reading across 1285 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Rough Shaking section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of A Rough Shaking 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 Rough Shaking, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
