Chapter 20 of A Selection from the Writings of Guy De is here in full — 183 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of A Selection from the Writings of Guy De is here in full — 183 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He replied: "I tell you that I have not. I am old because I never take air. There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe." I could not believe him. "You must surely have been married as well?
Chapter 20 of A Selection from the Writings of Guy De is here in full — 183 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/36 · 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 mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading “I am old because I never take air.”
a particular environment or surrounding influence
From this reading “There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."”
for the reason that
From this reading “I am old because I never take air.”
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading “I could not believe him.”
a small restaurant where drinks and snacks are sold
From this reading “There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."”
joined in matrimony
From this reading “"You must surely have been married as well?”
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading “He replied: "I tell you that I have not.”
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading “"You must surely have been married as well?”
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 There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading I am old because I never take air.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading I am old because I never take air.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading "You must surely have been married as well?
a particular environment or surrounding influence
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
for the reason that
From this reading I am old because I never take air.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading "You must surely have been married as well?
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading I could not believe him.
a small restaurant where drinks and snacks are sold
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading I could not believe him.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading He replied: "I tell you that I have not.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He replied: "I tell you that I have not.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I could not believe him.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading He replied: "I tell you that I have not.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
joined in matrimony
From this reading "You must surely have been married as well?
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading "You must surely have been married as well?
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading I am old because I never take air.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading He replied: "I tell you that I have not.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading I am old because I never take air.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading He replied: "I tell you that I have not.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading "You must surely have been married as well?
carry out
From this reading I am old because I never take air.
express in words
From this reading He replied: "I tell you that I have not.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading He replied: "I tell you that I have not.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
in or at that place or location
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is nothing that vitiates the life of a man more than the atmosphere of a cafe."
(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 "You must surely have been married as well?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading He replied: "I tell you that I have not.
Chapter 20 of A Selection from the Writings of Guy De by Guy de Maupassant holds 183 sentences, grouped into 37 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 20 holds 183 sentences of A Selection from the Writings of Guy De, unabridged, divided into 37 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of A Selection from the Writings of Guy De by Guy de Maupassant exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 183 sentences, grouped into 37 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 37 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 37 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 20 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 Selection from the Writings of Guy De by Guy de Maupassant on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4604 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #593 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #593, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 383 minutes of reading across 921 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Selection from the Writings of Guy De section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 27 chapters of A Selection from the Writings of Guy De 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 Selection from the Writings of Guy De, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
