Chapter 1 of Beau Brocade: A Romance is here in full — 127 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Beau Brocade: A Romance is here in full — 127 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
GREENING & CO. LTD. All dramatic rights are strictly reserved and protected. Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads. When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
Chapter 1 of Beau Brocade: A Romance is here in full — 127 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/25 · 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.
not methodically or according to plan
From this reading “When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!”
a noncommissioned officer in the Army or Air Force or Marines
From this reading “When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!”
marked by lack of definite plan or regularity or purpose; jumping from one thing to another
From this reading “When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!”
the phenomenon of vitality and freshness being restored
From this reading “GREENING & CO.”
a formal public statement
From this reading “When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!”
kept safe or defended from danger or injury or loss
From this reading “All dramatic rights are strictly reserved and protected.”
plural of “stationer” — a merchant who sells writing materials and office supplies
From this reading “Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.”
restricted to something
From this reading “All dramatic rights are strictly reserved and protected.”
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 “When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
(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 All dramatic rights are strictly reserved and protected.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading All dramatic rights are strictly reserved and protected.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading All dramatic rights are strictly reserved and protected.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
not methodically or according to plan
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
an odorless very poisonous gas that is a product of incomplete combustion of carbon
From this reading GREENING & CO.
a noncommissioned officer in the Army or Air Force or Marines
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
marked by lack of definite plan or regularity or purpose; jumping from one thing to another
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
suitable to or characteristic of drama
From this reading All dramatic rights are strictly reserved and protected.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
(of materials or goods) brought to the desired final state
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
the phenomenon of vitality and freshness being restored
From this reading GREENING & CO.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
plural of “head” — the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LTD.
march in a procession
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
past form of “murmur” — speak softly or indistinctly
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
a formal public statement
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
kept safe or defended from danger or injury or loss
From this reading All dramatic rights are strictly reserved and protected.
the cognitive process of understanding a written linguistic message
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
set aside for the use of a particular person or party
From this reading All dramatic rights are strictly reserved and protected.
plural of “right” — an abstract idea of that which is due to a person or governmental body by law or tradition or nature
From this reading All dramatic rights are strictly reserved and protected.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
of or relating to or indicative of or issued or performed by a king or queen or other monarch
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
past form of “sigh” — heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
plural of “stationer” — a merchant who sells writing materials and office supplies
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
restricted to something
From this reading All dramatic rights are strictly reserved and protected.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Entered at Stationers’ Hall, March 6th, 1906 The gaffers stood round and shook their heads.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
at the time that
From this reading When the Corporal had finished reading the Royal Proclamation, one or two of them sighed in a desultory fashion, others murmured casually, "Lordy!
Chapter 1 of Beau Brocade: A Romance by Emmuska Orczy, Baroness Orczy holds 127 sentences, grouped into 26 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 127 sentences of Beau Brocade: A Romance, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Beau Brocade: A Romance by Emmuska Orczy, Baroness Orczy exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 127 sentences, grouped into 26 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 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 26 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 Beau Brocade: A Romance by Emmuska Orczy, Baroness Orczy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4098 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #39786 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #39786, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 341 minutes of reading across 820 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Beau Brocade: A Romance section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of Beau Brocade: A Romance 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 Beau Brocade: A Romance, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
