Chapter 32 of Babbitt is here in full — 223 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXII
Chapter 32 of Babbitt is here in full — 223 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I His wife was up when he came in. “Did you have a good time?” she sniffed. “I did not. I had a rotten time! Anything else I got to explain?”
Chapter 32 of Babbitt is here in full — 223 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/44 · 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.
any thing at all
From this reading “Anything else I got to explain?””
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading “I His wife was up when he came in.”
make plain and comprehensible
From this reading “Anything else I got to explain?””
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading ““Did you have a good time?” she sniffed.”
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading “Anything else I got to explain?””
very bad
From this reading “I had a rotten time!”
past form of “sniff” — perceive by inhaling through the nose
From this reading ““Did you have a good time?” she sniffed.”
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading “I His wife was up when he came in.”
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 “Did you have a good time?” she sniffed.
any thing at all
From this reading Anything else I got to explain?”
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading I His wife was up when he came in.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading “Did you have a good time?” she sniffed.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Anything else I got to explain?”
make plain and comprehensible
From this reading Anything else I got to explain?”
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading “Did you have a good time?” she sniffed.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading Anything else I got to explain?”
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading I had a rotten time!
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “Did you have a good time?” she sniffed.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading I His wife was up when he came in.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading I His wife was up when he came in.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I His wife was up when he came in.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I His wife was up when he came in.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “I did not.
very bad
From this reading I had a rotten time!
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Did you have a good time?” she sniffed.
past form of “sniff” — perceive by inhaling through the nose
From this reading “Did you have a good time?” she sniffed.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading “Did you have a good time?” she sniffed.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Anything else I got to explain?”
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading I His wife was up when he came in.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I His wife was up when he came in.
at the time that
From this reading I His wife was up when he came in.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading I His wife was up when he came in.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Did you have a good time?” she sniffed.
Chapter 32 of Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis holds 223 sentences, grouped into 45 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 32 holds 223 sentences of Babbitt, unabridged, divided into 45 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 32 of Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 223 sentences, grouped into 45 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 45 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 45 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 32 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 Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7557 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1156 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1156, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1512 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Babbitt section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 34 chapters of Babbitt 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 Babbitt, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
