Chapter 1 of Back to Life is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Back to Life is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France. Pray God the war will soon be over.” “With victory!” said the old priest. “With an enemy beaten and bleeding beneath our feet. The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
Chapter 1 of Back to Life is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 23/84 · 5 reading units · Lines 111–115
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.
formed or made thin by hammering
From this reading ““With an enemy beaten and bleeding beneath our feet.”
the flow of blood from a ruptured blood vessel
From this reading ““With an enemy beaten and bleeding beneath our feet.”
a subdivision of a written work; usually numbered and titled
From this reading “It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.”
plural of “crime” — (criminal law) an act punishable by law; usually considered an evil act
From this reading “The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.””
plural of “german” — a person of German nationality
From this reading “The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.””
subjected to a penalty (as pain or shame or restraint or loss) for an offense or fault or in order to coerce some behavior (as a confession or obedience)
From this reading “The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.””
an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
From this reading “It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.”
a successful ending of a struggle or contest
From this reading ““With victory!” said the old priest.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
In this reading ““With victory!” said the old priest.”
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.
(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 The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading “With an enemy beaten and bleeding beneath our feet.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “With an enemy beaten and bleeding beneath our feet.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Pray God the war will soon be over.”
formed or made thin by hammering
From this reading “With an enemy beaten and bleeding beneath our feet.
Directly under; in or to a lower position than.
From this reading “With an enemy beaten and bleeding beneath our feet.
the flow of blood from a ruptured blood vessel
From this reading “With an enemy beaten and bleeding beneath our feet.
a subdivision of a written work; usually numbered and titled
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
plural of “crime” — (criminal law) an act punishable by law; usually considered an evil act
From this reading The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
an opposing military force
From this reading “With an enemy beaten and bleeding beneath our feet.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading “With an enemy beaten and bleeding beneath our feet.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
a republic in western Europe; the largest country wholly in Europe
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
plural of “german” — a person of German nationality
From this reading The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions
From this reading Pray God the war will soon be over.”
the aggregate of past events
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
the quality of being just or fair
From this reading The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading “With victory!” said the old priest.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
above and across; more than
From this reading Pray God the war will soon be over.”
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
address a deity, a prophet, a saint or an object of worship; say a prayer
From this reading Pray God the war will soon be over.”
a clergyman in Christian churches who has the authority to perform or administer various religious rites; one of the Holy Orders
From this reading “With victory!” said the old priest.
subjected to a penalty (as pain or shame or restraint or loss) for an offense or fault or in order to coerce some behavior (as a confession or obedience)
From this reading The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “With victory!” said the old priest.
filled with satisfaction
From this reading The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
in the near future
From this reading Pray God the war will soon be over.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading The Germans must be punished for all their crimes, or the justice of God will not be satisfied.”
an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
From this reading It is one more chapter of tragedy in the history of our poor France.
a successful ending of a struggle or contest
From this reading “With victory!” said the old priest.
the waging of armed conflict against an enemy
From this reading Pray God the war will soon be over.”
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading Pray God the war will soon be over.”
in the company of; together with
From this reading “With victory!” said the old priest.
Chapter 1 of Back to Life by Philip Gibbs holds 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 1 holds 422 sentences of Back to Life, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Back to Life by Philip Gibbs exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 1 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 Back to Life by Philip Gibbs on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Back to Life section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Back to Life 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 Back to Life, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
