Chapter 33 of At the Back of the North Wind is here in full — 245 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXIII
Chapter 33 of At the Back of the North Wind is here in full — 245 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.” “Which child, Martha?” asked Joseph. “You've got a choice now.” “Well, Diamond I mean.
Chapter 33 of At the Back of the North Wind is here in full — 245 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/49 · 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.
a young person of either sex
From this reading “THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.””
the person or thing chosen or selected
From this reading ““You've got a choice now.””
providing or experiencing physical well-being or relief (“comfy” is informal)
From this reading “THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.””
a transparent piece of diamond that has been cut and polished and is valued as a precious gem
From this reading “THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.””
possessive form of “diamond” — a transparent piece of diamond that has been cut and polished and is valued as a precious gem
From this reading “THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.””
leader of the Nez Perce in their retreat from United States troops (1840-1904)
From this reading “asked Joseph.”
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading ““Well, Diamond I mean.”
immediately following in time or order
From this reading “THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.””
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 “You've got a choice now.”
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
anew
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading asked Joseph.
a young person of either sex
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
the person or thing chosen or selected
From this reading “You've got a choice now.”
providing or experiencing physical well-being or relief (“comfy” is informal)
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
a transparent piece of diamond that has been cut and polished and is valued as a precious gem
From this reading “Well, Diamond I mean.
possessive form of “diamond” — a transparent piece of diamond that has been cut and polished and is valued as a precious gem
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading “You've got a choice now.”
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Well, Diamond I mean.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
leader of the Nez Perce in their retreat from United States troops (1840-1904)
From this reading asked Joseph.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Which child, Martha?”
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading “Well, Diamond I mean.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
immediately following in time or order
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “You've got a choice now.”
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, “I'm not quite comfortable about that child again.”
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading “Well, Diamond I mean.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading “Which child, Martha?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You've got a choice now.”
Chapter 33 of At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald holds 245 sentences, grouped into 49 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.
Chapter 33 holds 245 sentences of At the Back of the North Wind, unabridged, divided into 49 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 33 of At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 245 sentences, grouped into 49 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 49 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 49 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 33 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 At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6064 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #225 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #225, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 505 minutes of reading across 1213 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through At the Back of the North Wind section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of At the Back of the North Wind 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 At the Back of the North Wind, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
