Chapter 4 of At the Sign of the Cat and Racket is here in full — 165 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of At the Sign of the Cat and Racket is here in full — 165 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on. “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful. He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him. I know since this morning that he adores Augustine, and he shall have her. Ah, cousin, do not shake your head in refusal.
Chapter 4 of At the Sign of the Cat and Racket is here in full — 165 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/33 · 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.
third-person singular of “adore” — love intensely
From this reading “I know since this morning that he adores Augustine, and he shall have her.”
(Roman Catholic Church) one of the great Fathers of the early Christian church; after a dramatic conversion to Christianity he became bishop of Hippo Regius in North Africa; St. Augustine emphasized man's need for grace (354-430)
From this reading “I know since this morning that he adores Augustine, and he shall have her.”
(of military officers) holding by virtue of a commission a rank of second lieutenant or ensign or above
From this reading “He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.”
any of numerous small pigeons
From this reading ““I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.”
plural of “evening” — the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading ““He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.”
appeal or request earnestly
From this reading “He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.”
the act of refusing
From this reading “Ah, cousin, do not shake your head in refusal.”
plural of “woe” — misery resulting from affliction
From this reading “He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.”
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.
third-person singular of “adore” — love intensely
From this reading I know since this morning that he adores Augustine, and he shall have her.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ah, cousin, do not shake your head in refusal.
(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 He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
(Roman Catholic Church) one of the great Fathers of the early Christian church; after a dramatic conversion to Christianity he became bishop of Hippo Regius in North Africa; St. Augustine emphasized man's need for grace (354-430)
From this reading I know since this morning that he adores Augustine, and he shall have her.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
(of military officers) holding by virtue of a commission a rank of second lieutenant or ensign or above
From this reading He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.
the child of your aunt or uncle
From this reading Ah, cousin, do not shake your head in refusal.
a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies
From this reading “I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.
greatly pleasing or entertaining
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading Ah, cousin, do not shake your head in refusal.
any of numerous small pigeons
From this reading “I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.
plural of “evening” — the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.
a period of fourteen consecutive days
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I know since this morning that he adores Augustine, and he shall have her.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading Ah, cousin, do not shake your head in refusal.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading I know since this morning that he adores Augustine, and he shall have her.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Ah, cousin, do not shake your head in refusal.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.
used as a French courtesy title; equivalent to English “Mr”
From this reading “I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading I know since this morning that he adores Augustine, and he shall have her.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Ah, cousin, do not shake your head in refusal.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.
the time that has elapsed
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
appeal or request earnestly
From this reading He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.
inflected form of “run” — move fast by using one's feet, with one foot off the ground at any given time
From this reading “I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.
the act of refusing
From this reading Ah, cousin, do not shake your head in refusal.
move or cause to move back and forth
From this reading Ah, cousin, do not shake your head in refusal.
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading I know since this morning that he adores Augustine, and he shall have her.
from a time in the past until now
From this reading I know since this morning that he adores Augustine, and he shall have her.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading I know since this morning that he adores Augustine, and he shall have her.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “He has come to my evenings this fortnight past, and made them delightful.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.
precisely as stated
From this reading “I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.
(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 “I know Monsieur de Sommervieux very well,” the Dove ran on.
plural of “woe” — misery resulting from affliction
From this reading He has told me all his woes, and commissioned me to plead for him.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Ah, cousin, do not shake your head in refusal.
Chapter 4 of At the Sign of the Cat and Racket by Honoré de Balzac holds 165 sentences, grouped into 33 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 4 holds 165 sentences of At the Sign of the Cat and Racket, unabridged, divided into 33 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of At the Sign of the Cat and Racket by Honoré de Balzac exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 165 sentences, grouped into 33 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 33 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 33 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 4 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 Sign of the Cat and Racket by Honoré de Balzac on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 931 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1680 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1680, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 77 minutes of reading across 187 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through At the Sign of the Cat and Racket section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of At the Sign of the Cat and Racket 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 Sign of the Cat and Racket, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
