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Anthem
Anthem

Chapter III · Chapter 3

Chapter 3 of Anthem is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Anthem
Context Illustration Reading 1/40 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
We wish to write this name.
We wish to speak it, but we dare not speak it above a whisper.
For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.
But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.
The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Anthem

Chapter III · Chapter 3

Chapter 3 of Anthem is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/40 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
We wish to write this name.
/wiː wɪʃ tuː raɪt ðɪs neɪm/
Line 2
We wish to speak it, but we dare not speak it above a whisper.
/wiː wɪʃ tuː spiːk ɪt bʌt wiː der nɑːt spiːk ɪt əˈbʌv ə ˈwɪspər/
Line 3
For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.
/fɔːr men ɑːr fərˈbɪd.ən tuː teɪk ˈnoʊtəs ʌv ˈwɪmən ənd ˈwɪmən ɑːr fərˈbɪd.ən tuː teɪk ˈnoʊtəs ʌv men/
Line 4
But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.
Line 5
The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.
/ðə ˈwɪmən huː hæv bɪn əˈsaɪnd tuː wɜːrk ðə sɔɪl laɪv ɪn ðə hoʊmz ʌv ðə ˈpezənts bɪˈɑːnd ðə ˈsɪti/

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.

assigned adjective US /əˈsaɪnd/

appointed to a post or duty

From this reading “The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.”

forbidden adjective US /fərˈbɪd.ən/

Not allowed; banned or prohibited by rule or law.

From this reading “For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.”

Homes noun US /hoʊmz/

plural of “home” — where you live at a particular time

From this reading “The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.”

Liberty noun US /ˈlɪb.ər.ti/

The state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions on one's way of life.

From this reading “But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.”

notice noun US /ˈnoʊtəs/

an announcement containing information about an event

From this reading “For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.”

Peasants noun US /ˈpezənts/

plural of “peasant” — a country person

From this reading “The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.”

soil noun US /sɔɪl/

the state of being covered with unclean things

From this reading “The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.”

whisper noun US /ˈwɪspər/

speaking softly without vibration of the vocal cords

From this reading “We wish to speak it, but we dare not speak it above a whisper.”

All words in this reading · 47

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.

3000

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

From this reading But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.

5

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

From this reading But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading We wish to speak it, but we dare not speak it above a whisper.

aboveprepositionUS /əˈbʌv/

higher than, or over, something

From this reading We wish to speak it, but we dare not speak it above a whisper.

amongprepositionUS /əˈmʌŋ/

surrounded by; in the middle of a group

From this reading But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.

areauxiliary verbUS /ɑːr/

the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.

assignedadjectiveUS /əˈsaɪnd/

appointed to a post or duty

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

beyondprepositionUS /bɪˈɑːnd/

on the far side of; further than

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading We wish to speak it, but we dare not speak it above a whisper.

CitynounUS /ˈsɪti/

a large and densely populated urban area; may include several independent administrative districts

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

dareverbUS /der/

take upon oneself; act presumptuously, without permission

From this reading We wish to speak it, but we dare not speak it above a whisper.

ForprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.

forbiddenadjectiveUS /fərˈbɪd.ən/

Not allowed; banned or prohibited by rule or law.

From this reading For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

HomesnounUS /hoʊmz/

plural of “home” — where you live at a particular time

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

isauxiliary verbUS /ɪz/

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

From this reading But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading We wish to speak it, but we dare not speak it above a whisper.

LibertynounUS /ˈlɪb.ər.ti/

The state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions on one's way of life.

From this reading But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.

liveverbUS /laɪv/

be an inhabitant of or reside in

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

mennounUS /men/

the force of workers available

From this reading For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.

nameverbUS /neɪm/

assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to

From this reading We wish to write this name.

nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading We wish to speak it, but we dare not speak it above a whisper.

noticenounUS /ˈnoʊtəs/

an announcement containing information about an event

From this reading For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.

others

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

From this reading But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.

PeasantsnounUS /ˈpezənts/

plural of “peasant” — a country person

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

soilnounUS /sɔɪl/

the state of being covered with unclean things

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

speakverbUS /spiːk/

express in speech

From this reading We wish to speak it, but we dare not speak it above a whisper.

takeverbUS /teɪk/

carry out

From this reading For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.

thinkverbUS /θɪŋk/

judge or regard; look upon; judge

From this reading But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.

thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

From this reading We wish to write this name.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading We wish to write this name.

WepronounUS /wiː/

the speaker together with one or more other people

From this reading We wish to write this name.

whispernounUS /ˈwɪspər/

speaking softly without vibration of the vocal cords

From this reading We wish to speak it, but we dare not speak it above a whisper.

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

whosedeterminerUS /huːz/

belonging to which person

From this reading But we think of one among women, they whose name is Liberty 5-3000, and we think of no others.

wishverbUS /wɪʃ/

hope for; have a wish

From this reading We wish to write this name.

womennounUS /ˈwɪmən/

plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)

From this reading For men are forbidden to take notice of women, and women are forbidden to take notice of men.

workverbUS /wɜːrk/

exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity

From this reading The women who have been assigned to work the soil live in the Homes of the Peasants beyond the City.

writeverbUS /raɪt/

produce a literary work

From this reading We wish to write this name.

Chapter 3 of Anthem by Ayn Rand holds 200 sentences, grouped into 40 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.

What does chapter 3 of Anthem contain?

Chapter 3 holds 200 sentences of Anthem, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 3 of Anthem by Ayn Rand exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 200 sentences, grouped into 40 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 3 of Anthem?

Work through the 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 40 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 3 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 3 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 Anthem

Common questions about reading Anthem by Ayn Rand on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Anthem?

Yes. All 1404 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1249 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Anthem is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #1249, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Anthem take to read?

About 117 minutes of reading across 281 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Anthem section by section

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

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 7 chapters of Anthem 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 Anthem

Words and structures a reader meets early in Anthem, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Follows
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Anthem; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Complete
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Anthem; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Comparison
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Anthem; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Including
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Anthem; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.