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A sham princess
A sham princess

Chapter I

Chapter 1 of A sham princess is here in full — 141 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Eglanton Thorne • Curated US English Learning Edition
Cover illustration for A sham princess
Context Illustration Reading 1/28 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.
BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.
"COULD it be that the Princess was going to die?"
Bert held his breath as the thought smote him.
He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.
0:00 / 0:00
Speed 0.75x
AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

A sham princess

Chapter I

Chapter 1 of A sham princess is here in full — 141 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/28 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.
Line 2
BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.
Line 3
"COULD it be that the Princess was going to die?"
/kʊd ɪt biː ðæt ðə ˈprɪn.ses wɑːz ˈɡoʊɪŋ tuː daɪ/
Line 4
Bert held his breath as the thought smote him.
Line 5
He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.
/hiː kʊd ˈɔːlmoʊst hiːr ðə ˈbiːtɪŋ ʌv hɪz hɑːrt æz hiː stʊd ˈmoʊʃənləs ərˈestɪd baɪ ðə ˈpeɪnfəl aɪˈdiːə ənd ɡeɪzd wɪð ˈæŋkʃəs aɪz ɑːn hɪz ˈsliːpɪŋ ˈsɪstər/

Learner Dictionary

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.

arrested verb US /ərˈestɪd/

past form of “arrest” — take into custody

From this reading “He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
beating noun US /ˈbiːtɪŋ/

the act of overcoming or outdoing

From this reading “He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
butler noun US /ˈbʌtlər/

a manservant (usually the head servant of a household) who has charge of wines and the table

From this reading “BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
jug noun US /dʒʌɡ/

a large bottle with a narrow mouth

From this reading “AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
motionless adjective US /ˈmoʊʃənləs/

not in physical motion

From this reading “He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
printing noun US /ˈprɪntɪŋ/

text handwritten in the style of printed matter

From this reading “BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
tanner noun US /ˈtænər/

a small coin of the United Kingdom worth six pennies; not minted since 1970

From this reading “BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
worcester noun US /ˈwʊstər/

United States lexicographer who was accused of plagiarism by Noah Webster (1784-1865)

From this reading “AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

stood motionless verb + adjective

In this reading “He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.”

2,983 times in 426,211 chapters
arrested by verb + particle counted as “arrest by”

In this reading “He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.”

2,727 times in 426,211 chapters

All words in this reading · 52

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.

almostadverbUS /ˈɔːlmoʊst/

(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
ANDconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
anxiousadjectiveUS /ˈæŋkʃəs/

eagerly desirous

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
arrestedverbUS /ərˈestɪd/

past form of “arrest” — take into custody

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

From this reading Bert held his breath as the thought smote him.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
AUTHORnounUS /ˈɔːθər/

writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)

From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading "COULD it be that the Princess was going to die?"

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
beatingnounUS /ˈbiːtɪŋ/

the act of overcoming or outdoing

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
Bert

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Bert held his breath as the thought smote him.

Pending verification
breathnounUS /breθ/

the process of taking in and expelling air during breathing

From this reading Bert held his breath as the thought smote him.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
BUTLERnounUS /ˈbʌtlər/

a manservant (usually the head servant of a household) who has charge of wines and the table

From this reading BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
COULDmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading "COULD it be that the Princess was going to die?"

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
dieverbUS /daɪ/

pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life

From this reading "COULD it be that the Princess was going to die?"

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
ETC

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.

Pending verification
eyesnounUS /aɪz/

opinion or judgment

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
FROME

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.

Pending verification
gazedverbUS /ɡeɪzd/

past form of “gaze” — look at with fixed eyes

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
goingnounUS /ˈɡoʊɪŋ/

the act of departing

From this reading "COULD it be that the Princess was going to die?"

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
HepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
hearverbUS /hiːr/

perceive (sound) via the auditory sense

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
heartnounUS /hɑːrt/

the locus of feelings and intuitions

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
heldadjectiveUS /held/

occupied or in the control of; often used in combination

From this reading Bert held his breath as the thought smote him.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading Bert held his breath as the thought smote him.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
HISdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
ideanounUS /aɪˈdiːə/

the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading "COULD it be that the Princess was going to die?"

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
JUGnounUS /dʒʌɡ/

a large bottle with a narrow mouth

From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
LONDONnounUS /ˈlʌndən/

the capital and largest city of England; located on the Thames in southeastern England; financial and industrial and cultural center

From this reading BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
motionlessadjectiveUS /ˈmoʊʃənləs/

not in physical motion

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
NAMEverbUS /neɪm/

assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to

From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
OFprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
OLDadjectiveUS /oʊld/

(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age

From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
painfuladjectiveUS /ˈpeɪnfəl/

causing physical or psychological pain

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
PrincessnounUS /ˈprɪn.ses/

The daughter of a monarch; a female member of a royal family.

From this reading "COULD it be that the Princess was going to die?"

Velmora curated lexicon
PRINTINGnounUS /ˈprɪntɪŋ/

text handwritten in the style of printed matter

From this reading BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
SELWOOD

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.

Pending verification
sisternounUS /ˈsɪstər/

a female person who has the same parents as another person

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
sleepingnounUS /ˈsliːpɪŋ/

the state of being asleep

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
smote

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Bert held his breath as the thought smote him.

Pending verification
stoodverbUS /stʊd/

Maintained an upright posture.

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

Velmora curated lexicon
TANNERnounUS /ˈtænər/

a small coin of the United Kingdom worth six pennies; not minted since 1970

From this reading BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading "COULD it be that the Princess was going to die?"

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
thoughtnounUS /θɔːt/

the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about

From this reading Bert held his breath as the thought smote him.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading "COULD it be that the Princess was going to die?"

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading "COULD it be that the Princess was going to die?"

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading He could almost hear the beating of his heart as he stood motionless, arrested by the painful idea, and gazed with anxious eyes on his sleeping sister.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
WORCESTERnounUS /ˈwʊstər/

United States lexicographer who was accused of plagiarism by Noah Webster (1784-1865)

From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
WORKSnounUS /wɜːrks/

buildings for carrying on industrial labor

From this reading BUTLER & TANNER THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS FROME, AND LONDON.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
WORTHYadjectiveUS /ˈwɜːr.ði/

Having or showing the qualities or abilities that merit recognition in character or magic.

From this reading AUTHOR OF "THE OLD WORCESTER JUG," "WORTHY OF HIS NAME," ETC., ETC.

Velmora curated lexicon

Chapter 1 of A sham princess by Eglanton Thorne holds 141 sentences, grouped into 29 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.

What does chapter 1 of A sham princess contain?

Chapter 1 holds 141 sentences of A sham princess, unabridged, divided into 29 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 1 of A sham princess by Eglanton Thorne exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 141 sentences, grouped into 29 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.

How do I study chapter 1 of A sham princess?

Work through the 29 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 29 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.

Can chapter 1 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 1 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.

Questions about reading A sham princess

Common questions about reading A sham princess by Eglanton Thorne on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of A sham princess?

Yes. All 1835 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #73824 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of A sham princess is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #73824, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does A sham princess take to read?

About 152 minutes of reading across 367 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read A sham princess section by section

How to work through A sham princess section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 13 chapters of A sham princess to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in A sham princess

Words and structures a reader meets early in A sham princess, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Author
A word that appears in the opening chapter of A sham princess; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Worcester
A word that appears in the opening chapter of A sham princess; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Worthy
A word that appears in the opening chapter of A sham princess; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Butler
A word that appears in the opening chapter of A sham princess; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.