Chapter 27 of An Englishwoman's Love-Letters is here in full — 76 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVII
Chapter 27 of An Englishwoman's Love-Letters is here in full — 76 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Come to me! I will not understand a word you have written till you come. Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it? Oh, if it is she, you do not owe her _that_ duty! Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
Chapter 27 of An Englishwoman's Love-Letters is here in full — 76 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/15 · 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.
make (someone) agree, understand, or realize the truth or validity of something
From this reading “Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?”
the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force
From this reading “Oh, if it is she, you do not owe her _that_ duty!”
bestow a quality on
From this reading “Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?”
hear with intention
From this reading “Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?”
be obliged to pay or repay
From this reading “Oh, if it is she, you do not owe her _that_ duty!”
deliver a sharp blow, as with the hand, fist, or weapon
From this reading “Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?”
an act that exploits or victimizes someone (treats them unfairly)
From this reading “Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?”
set down in writing in any of various ways
From this reading “I will not understand a word you have written till you come.”
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 I will not understand a word you have written till you come.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Come to me!
make (someone) agree, understand, or realize the truth or validity of something
From this reading Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force
From this reading Oh, if it is she, you do not owe her _that_ duty!
at any time
From this reading Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
set up or found
From this reading Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I will not understand a word you have written till you come.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Oh, if it is she, you do not owe her _that_ duty!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I will not understand a word you have written till you come.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Oh, if it is she, you do not owe her _that_ duty!
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Oh, if it is she, you do not owe her _that_ duty!
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
bestow a quality on
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
hear with intention
From this reading Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Come to me!
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading I will not understand a word you have written till you come.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading Oh, if it is she, you do not owe her _that_ duty!
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
be obliged to pay or repay
From this reading Oh, if it is she, you do not owe her _that_ duty!
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Oh, if it is she, you do not owe her _that_ duty!
express in speech
From this reading Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
deliver a sharp blow, as with the hand, fist, or weapon
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Oh, if it is she, you do not owe her _that_ duty!
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
up to a particular time
From this reading I will not understand a word you have written till you come.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Come to me!
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading I will not understand a word you have written till you come.
an act that exploits or victimizes someone (treats them unfairly)
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
which person or people
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading I will not understand a word you have written till you come.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading I will not understand a word you have written till you come.
produce a literary work
From this reading Never write such things:--speak! have you ever found me not listen to you, or hard to convince?
set down in writing in any of various ways
From this reading I will not understand a word you have written till you come.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I will not understand a word you have written till you come.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Who has been using your hand to strike me like this, and why do you lend it?
Chapter 27 of An Englishwoman's Love-Letters by Laurence Housman holds 76 sentences, grouped into 16 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 27 holds 76 sentences of An Englishwoman's Love-Letters, unabridged, divided into 16 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 27 of An Englishwoman's Love-Letters by Laurence Housman exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 76 sentences, grouped into 16 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 16 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 16 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 27 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 Englishwoman's Love-Letters by Laurence Housman on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2382 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #15941 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #15941, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 198 minutes of reading across 477 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through An Englishwoman's Love-Letters section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of An Englishwoman's Love-Letters 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 Englishwoman's Love-Letters, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
