Basil Everman

Chapter VII

Chapter 7 of Basil Everman is here in full — 158 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Elsie Singmaster • Curated US English Learning Edition

English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

She was consumed with impatience to hear what he had to say.

If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

She did not wish the young man--if that gorgeously clad young man were really the messenger of the gods--to stay long; she needed, after the excitement of the day, to be alone, to be quiet, to touch her piano in the darkness, the piano dedicated in such a surprising and poetic way.

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Chapter VII Reading 1/31

Basil Everman Elsie Singmaster

Chapter VII

Chapter 7 of Basil Everman is here in full — 158 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking. He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour. She was consumed with impatience to hear what he had to say. If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once. She did not wish the young man--if that gorgeously clad young man were really the messenger of the gods--to stay long; she needed, after the excitement of the day, to be alone, to be quiet, to touch her piano in the darkness, the piano dedicated in such a surprising and poetic way.

Basil Everman

Chapter VII

Chapter 7 of Basil Everman is here in full — 158 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/31 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

Line 2

He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

Line 3

She was consumed with impatience to hear what he had to say.

/ʃiː wɑːz kənˈsuːmd wɪð ˌɪmˈpeɪʃəns tuː hiːr wʌt hiː hæd tuː seɪ/

Line 4

If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

Line 5

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.

clad adjective US /klæd/

wearing or provided with clothing; sometimes used in combination

From this reading “She did not wish the young man--if that gorgeously clad young man were really the messenger of the gods--to stay long; she needed, after the excitement of the day, to be alone, to be quiet, to touch her piano in the darkness, the piano dedicated in such a surprising and poetic way.”

consumed verb US /kənˈsuːmd/

past form of “consume” — eat up completely, as with great appetite

From this reading “She was consumed with impatience to hear what he had to say.”

dedicated adjective US /ˈdedəkeɪtəd/

devoted to a cause or ideal or purpose

nervously adverb US /ˈnɜːrvəsli/

in an anxiously nervous manner

From this reading “He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.”

perchance adverb US /pərˈtʃæns/

through chance

From this reading “If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.”

poetic adjective US /poʊˈetɪk/

of or relating to poetry

spends verb US /spendz/

third-person singular of “spend” — use up a period of time in a specific way

From this reading “UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.”

surprising adjective US /sərˈpraɪzɪŋ/

causing surprise or wonder or amazement

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

three hours noun + noun

In this reading “UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.”

young man adjective + noun

a teenager or a young adult male

In this reading “She did not wish the young man--if that gorgeously clad young man were really the messenger of the gods--to stay long; she needed, after the excitement of the day, to be alone, to be quiet, to touch her piano in the darkness, the piano dedicated in such a surprising and poetic way.”

at once preposition + adverb

without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening

In this reading “If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.”

PLEASANT EVENING adjective + noun

In this reading “UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.”

with impatience preposition + noun

In this reading “She was consumed with impatience to hear what he had to say.”

in the darkness preposition + article + noun counted as “in … darkness”

stay long verb + adjective

for an hour preposition + article + noun counted as “for … hour”

In this reading “He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.”

All words in this reading · 88

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.

AdeterminerUS /ə/

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

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

acceptedadjectiveUS /ækˈseptɪd/

generally approved or compelling recognition

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

adviseverbUS /ædˈvaɪz/

give advice to

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/

later than; following

From this reading She did not wish the young man--if that gorgeously clad young man were really the messenger of the gods--to stay long; she needed, after the excitement of the day, to be alone, to be quiet, to touch her piano in the darkness, the piano dedicated in such a surprising and poetic way.

aloneadjectiveUS /əˈloʊn/

Having no one else present.

alsoadverbUS /ˈɔːlsoʊ/

in addition

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

andeterminerUS /æn/

the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

arriveverbUS /ərˈaɪv/

reach a destination; arrive by movement or progress

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

BentnounUS /bent/

a relatively permanent inclination to react in a particular way

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

cladadjectiveUS /klæd/

wearing or provided with clothing; sometimes used in combination

comeverbUS /kʌm/

move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

consumedverbUS /kənˈsuːmd/

past form of “consume” — eat up completely, as with great appetite

From this reading She was consumed with impatience to hear what he had to say.

darknessnounUS /ˈdɑːrknəs/

absence of light or illumination

daynounUS /deɪ/

time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis

dedicatedadjectiveUS /ˈdedəkeɪtəd/

devoted to a cause or ideal or purpose

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

eightadjectiveUS /eɪt/

being one more than seven

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

Eleanor

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

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

EVENINGnounUS /ˈiːvnɪŋ/

the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

excitementnounUS /ɪkˈsaɪtmənt/

the feeling of lively and cheerful joy

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

godsnounUS /ɡɑːdz/

plural of “god” — the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions

gorgeouslyadverb

in an impressively beautiful manner

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

HepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

hearverbUS /hiːr/

perceive (sound) via the auditory sense

From this reading She was consumed with impatience to hear what he had to say.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

hournounUS /ˈaʊər/

a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

hoursnounUS /ˈaʊərz/

a period of time assigned for work

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

IfconjunctionUS /ɪf/

on condition that; in the event that

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

impatiencenounUS /ˌɪmˈpeɪʃəns/

a lack of patience; irritation with anything that causes delay

From this reading She was consumed with impatience to hear what he had to say.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

knowverbUS /noʊ/

be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

lateadjectiveUS /leɪt/

being or occurring at an advanced period of time or after a usual or expected time

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

longadjectiveUS /lɔːŋ/

primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified

mannounUS /mæn/

an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)

messengernounUS /ˈmesəndʒər/

a person who carries a message

moreadjectiveUS /mɔːr/

(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

mother'snounUS /ˈmʌðərz/

possessive form of “mother” — a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

neededadjectiveUS /ˈniːdəd/

necessary for relief or supply

nervouslyadverbUS /ˈnɜːrvəsli/

in an anxiously nervous manner

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

o'clockadverbUS /əˈklɑːk/

according to the clock

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

onceadverbUS /wʌns/

on one occasion

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

perchanceadverbUS /pərˈtʃæns/

through chance

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

pianonounUS /piˈænoʊ/

a keyboard instrument that is played by depressing keys that cause hammers to strike tuned strings and produce sounds

PLEASANTadjectiveUS /ˈplezənt/

affording pleasure; being in harmony with your taste or likings

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

poeticadjectiveUS /poʊˈetɪk/

of or relating to poetry

porchnounUS /pɔːrtʃ/

a structure attached to the exterior of a building often forming a covered entrance

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

quietadjectiveUS /ˈkwaɪət/

characterized by an absence or near absence of agitation or activity

reallyadverbUS /ˈrɪli/

in accordance with truth or fact or reality

satnounUS /sæt/

the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

sayverbUS /seɪ/

express in words

From this reading She was consumed with impatience to hear what he had to say.

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

SPENDSverbUS /spendz/

third-person singular of “spend” — use up a period of time in a specific way

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

stayverbUS /steɪ/

stay the same; remain in a certain state

storynounUS /ˈstɔːri/

a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/

of the kind already mentioned

surprisingadjectiveUS /sərˈpraɪzɪŋ/

causing surprise or wonder or amazement

talkingnounUS /ˈtɔːkɪŋ/

an exchange of ideas via conversation

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

threenounUS /θriː/

the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading She was consumed with impatience to hear what he had to say.

touchverbUS /tʌtʃ/

make physical contact with, come in contact with

untilprepositionUS /ənˈtɪl/

up to a particular time

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

UTTERLYadverbUS /ˈʌtərli/

completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

Waltonville

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

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

watchingnounUS /ˈwɑːtʃɪŋ/

the act of observing; taking a patient look

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

waynounUS /weɪ/

how something is done or how it happens

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

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

whatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading She was consumed with impatience to hear what he had to say.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading He did not arrive until eight o'clock, which was late in Waltonville, and she had been nervously watching for him for an hour.

wishverbUS /wɪʃ/

hope for; have a wish

wishedverbUS /wɪʃt/

past form of “wish” — hope for; have a wish

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading UTTERLY SPENDS A PLEASANT EVENING Utterly sat for three hours with Eleanor Bent on her mother's porch, talking.

writeverbUS /raɪt/

produce a literary work

From this reading If her story had not been accepted, she wished to know it at once; if, perchance, he had come to advise her to write no more--that also she wished to know at once.

youngadjectiveUS /jʌŋ/

(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth

Chapter 7 of Basil Everman by Elsie Singmaster holds 158 sentences, grouped into 32 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.

What does chapter 7 of Basil Everman contain?

Chapter 7 holds 158 sentences of Basil Everman, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 7 of Basil Everman by Elsie Singmaster exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 158 sentences, grouped into 32 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 7 of Basil Everman?

Work through the 32 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 32 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 7 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 7 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.

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Is this the complete text of Basil Everman?

Yes. All 5245 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #46405 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #46405, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Basil Everman take to read?

About 437 minutes of reading across 1049 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Vocabulary met early in Basil Everman

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

Basil: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Basil Everman; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
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Chapter VII

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