Chapter 6 of An Alabaster Box is here in full — 233 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of An Alabaster Box is here in full — 233 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together. “The dew does take the curl out so. It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny. It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.” Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.
Chapter 6 of An Alabaster Box is here in full — 233 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/46 · 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.
form a curl, curve, or kink
From this reading ““The dew does take the curl out so.”
a game played on ice in which heavy stones with handles are slid toward a target
From this reading “Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.”
(of hair) having curls or waves
From this reading “It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.”
water that has condensed on a cool surface overnight from water vapor in the air
From this reading ““The dew does take the curl out so.”
like down or as soft as down
From this reading “Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.”
past form of “peer” — look searchingly
From this reading ““Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.”
comparative of “pretty” — pleasing by delicacy or grace; not imposing
From this reading “It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.””
shaken into waves or undulations as by wind
From this reading “It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.””
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.”
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.”
an orange of low brightness and saturation
From this reading Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.
form a curl, curve, or kink
From this reading “The dew does take the curl out so.
a game played on ice in which heavy stones with handles are slid toward a target
From this reading Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.
(of hair) having curls or waves
From this reading It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.
slightly wet
From this reading It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.”
socially or conventionally correct; refined or virtuous
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
water that has condensed on a cool surface overnight from water vapor in the air
From this reading “The dew does take the curl out so.
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
the fleshy part of the human body that you sit on
From this reading It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.
like down or as soft as down
From this reading Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.”
the part of the face above the eyes
From this reading Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
plural of “look” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.”
appealing to the emotions as well as the eye
From this reading It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.
the common people generally
From this reading Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.
polished surface that forms images by reflecting light
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
as might be expected
From this reading It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading “The dew does take the curl out so.
past form of “peer” — look searchingly
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
comparative of “pretty” — pleasing by delicacy or grace; not imposing
From this reading It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.”
the act of pulling; applying force to move something toward or with you
From this reading Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.
shaken into waves or undulations as by wind
From this reading It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.”
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “The dew does take the curl out so.
carry out
From this reading “The dew does take the curl out so.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.
in contact with each other or in proximity
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading “Does my hair look decent?” asked Ellen, as the two girls peered into the mirror together.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading It looks all the prettier for being damp and ruffled up.”
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Fanny was pulling out the fluffy masses of curling brown hair about her forehead.
the one or ones belonging to the person spoken to
From this reading It must be lovely to have naturally curly hair, like yours, Fanny.
Chapter 6 of An Alabaster Box by Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman holds 233 sentences, grouped into 47 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 6 holds 233 sentences of An Alabaster Box, unabridged, divided into 47 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of An Alabaster Box by Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 233 sentences, grouped into 47 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 47 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 47 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 6 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 An Alabaster Box by Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5058 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #18140 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #18140, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 421 minutes of reading across 1012 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through An Alabaster Box section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of An Alabaster Box 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 An Alabaster Box, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
