Chapter 4 of A Royal Prisoner is here in full — 152 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of A Royal Prisoner is here in full — 152 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
WHO DO THEY THINK I AM? The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station. Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared: "I must go and see the chief." "At his house?" demanded the other in a tone of alarm.
Chapter 4 of A Royal Prisoner is here in full — 152 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/30 · 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.
fear resulting from the awareness of danger
From this reading “"At his house?" demanded the other in a tone of alarm.”
the first light of day
From this reading “The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.”
any of several games played with small rectangular blocks
From this reading “Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:”
covered with a layer of dust
From this reading “The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.”
-ing form of “filter” — remove by passing through a filter
From this reading “The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.”
the act of applying force in order to move something away
From this reading “Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:”
any of several noncommissioned officer ranks in the Army or Air Force or Marines ranking above a corporal
From this reading “Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:”
lower in rank or importance
From this reading “Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:”
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 "At his house?" demanded the other in a tone of alarm.
fear resulting from the awareness of danger
From this reading "At his house?" demanded the other in a tone of alarm.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading WHO DO THEY THINK I AM?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "I must go and see the chief."
on or to one side
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "At his house?" demanded the other in a tone of alarm.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
a person who is in charge
From this reading "I must go and see the chief."
the first light of day
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
made known or openly avowed
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
past form of “demand” — request urgently and forcefully
From this reading "At his house?" demanded the other in a tone of alarm.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading WHO DO THEY THINK I AM?
any of several games played with small rectangular blocks
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
covered with a layer of dust
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
-ing form of “filter” — remove by passing through a filter
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
a contest with rules to determine a winner
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading "I must go and see the chief."
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading "At his house?" demanded the other in a tone of alarm.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading WHO DO THEY THINK I AM?
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "At his house?" demanded the other in a tone of alarm.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading "I must go and see the chief."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading "At his house?" demanded the other in a tone of alarm.
the act of playing a musical instrument
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
the force of policemen and officers
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
the act of applying force in order to move something away
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "I must go and see the chief."
any of several noncommissioned officer ranks in the Army or Air Force or Marines ranking above a corporal
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
a facility equipped with special equipment and personnel for a particular purpose
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
lower in rank or importance
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading WHO DO THEY THINK I AM?
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading WHO DO THEY THINK I AM?
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
the quality of a person's voice
From this reading "At his house?" demanded the other in a tone of alarm.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
which person or people
From this reading WHO DO THEY THINK I AM?
(trademark) an operating system with a graphical user interface
From this reading The first faint light of dawn was filtering through the dusty windows of the police station.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Sergeant Masson, pushing aside the game of dominoes he had been playing with his subordinate, declared:
Chapter 4 of A Royal Prisoner by Pierre Souvestre holds 152 sentences, grouped into 31 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 152 sentences of A Royal Prisoner, unabridged, divided into 31 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of A Royal Prisoner by Pierre Souvestre exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 152 sentences, grouped into 31 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 31 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 31 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 Royal Prisoner by Pierre Souvestre on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3849 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #27789 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #27789, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 320 minutes of reading across 770 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Royal Prisoner section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 32 chapters of A Royal Prisoner 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 Royal Prisoner, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
