Chapter 14 of Beauty and the Beast, and Tales of Home is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIV
Chapter 14 of Beauty and the Beast, and Tales of Home is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“I don't say NOW,” he went on. “After a while, when--well, when I'm dead. And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be. Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience. Give me your word: say, 'For mother's sake!'”
Chapter 14 of Beauty and the Beast, and Tales of Home is here in full — 168 sentences across 34 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.
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading “And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.”
motivation deriving logically from ethical or moral principles that govern a person's thoughts and actions
From this reading “Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.”
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading “Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.”
one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading “Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.”
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 “Give me your word: say, 'For mother's sake!'””
a reason for wanting something done
From this reading “Give me your word: say, 'For mother's sake!'””
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading “Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.”
in the direction of
From this reading “And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.”
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 “After a while, when--well, when I'm dead.
later than; following
From this reading “After a while, when--well, when I'm dead.
(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 Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.
the event consisting of the start of something
From this reading And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.
motivation deriving logically from ethical or moral principles that govern a person's thoughts and actions
From this reading Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading “After a while, when--well, when I'm dead.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I don't say NOW,” he went on.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Give me your word: say, 'For mother's sake!'”
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading Give me your word: say, 'For mother's sake!'”
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “I don't say NOW,” he went on.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I don't say NOW,” he went on.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “After a while, when--well, when I'm dead.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Give me your word: say, 'For mother's sake!'”
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.
one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.
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 Give me your word: say, 'For mother's sake!'”
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “I don't say NOW,” he went on.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “I don't say NOW,” he went on.
and nothing more
From this reading And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.
a reason for wanting something done
From this reading Give me your word: say, 'For mother's sake!'”
express in words
From this reading “I don't say NOW,” he went on.
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.
in the direction of
From this reading And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading Only a month; I don't want to seem hard to you; but that's little, in all conscience.
(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 “After a while, when--well, when I'm dead.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading “I don't say NOW,” he went on.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.
at the time that
From this reading “After a while, when--well, when I'm dead.
during the time that
From this reading “After a while, when--well, when I'm dead.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading Give me your word: say, 'For mother's sake!'”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading And I only mean a beginning, to help you toward what HAS to be.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Give me your word: say, 'For mother's sake!'”
Chapter 14 of Beauty and the Beast, and Tales of Home by Bayard Taylor holds 168 sentences, grouped into 34 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 14 holds 168 sentences of Beauty and the Beast, and Tales of Home, unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 14 of Beauty and the Beast, and Tales of Home by Bayard Taylor exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 168 sentences, grouped into 34 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 34 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 34 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 14 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 Beauty and the Beast, and Tales of Home by Bayard Taylor on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4210 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #292 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #292, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 350 minutes of reading across 842 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Beauty and the Beast, and Tales of Home section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of Beauty and the Beast, and Tales of Home 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 Beauty and the Beast, and Tales of Home, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
