Chapter XV of A successful venture, “Victoria Meets with Difficulties,” is here in full — 263 sentences across 53 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter XV of A successful venture, “Victoria Meets with Difficulties,” is here in full — 263 sentences across 53 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect. There are a number of mistakes in this letter. How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?” “Not very long, Aunt Sophia.” “But how long?”
Chapter XV of A successful venture, “Victoria Meets with Difficulties,” is here in full — 263 sentences across 53 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/52 · 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.
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading ““Not very long, Aunt Sophia.””
regard something as probable or likely
From this reading ““IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.”
plural of “mistake” — a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention
From this reading “There are a number of mistakes in this letter.”
the property possessed by a sum or total or indefinite quantity of units or individuals
From this reading “There are a number of mistakes in this letter.”
having or showing knowledge and skill and aptitude
From this reading ““IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.”
hand-operated character printer for printing written messages one character at a time
From this reading “How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?””
an act that exploits or victimizes someone (treats them unfairly)
From this reading “How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?””
queen of Great Britain and Ireland and empress of India from 1837 to 1901; the last Hanoverian ruler of England (1819-1901)
From this reading “How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?””
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.
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 are a number of mistakes in this letter.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading “Not very long, Aunt Sophia.”
the past participle of “be”
From this reading How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?”
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading “But how long?”
regard something as probable or likely
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading There are a number of mistakes in this letter.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading There are a number of mistakes in this letter.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?”
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
plural of “mistake” — a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention
From this reading There are a number of mistakes in this letter.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
the property possessed by a sum or total or indefinite quantity of units or individuals
From this reading There are a number of mistakes in this letter.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading There are a number of mistakes in this letter.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
having or showing knowledge and skill and aptitude
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Not very long, Aunt Sophia.”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?”
in or at that place or location
From this reading There are a number of mistakes in this letter.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading There are a number of mistakes in this letter.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
hand-operated character printer for printing written messages one character at a time
From this reading How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?”
an act that exploits or victimizes someone (treats them unfairly)
From this reading How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?”
precisely as stated
From this reading “Not very long, Aunt Sophia.”
queen of Great Britain and Ireland and empress of India from 1837 to 1901; the last Hanoverian ruler of England (1819-1901)
From this reading How long have you been using the typewriter, Victoria?”
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “IT seems to me that you are not as proficient as one would expect.
Chapter 15 of A successful venture by Ellen Douglas Deland holds 263 sentences, grouped into 53 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 263 sentences of A successful venture, unabridged, divided into 53 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of A successful venture by Ellen Douglas Deland exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 263 sentences, grouped into 53 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 53 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 53 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 successful venture by Ellen Douglas Deland on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4178 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #68799 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #68799, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 348 minutes of reading across 836 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A successful venture section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 18 chapters of A successful venture 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 successful venture, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
