Chapter 25 of Bird of Paradise is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXV
Chapter 25 of Bird of Paradise is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MRS. PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way. She spoke with a very slight Cockney accent. She bristled with aigrettes and sparkled with jewels. Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
Chapter 25 of Bird of Paradise is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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.
distinctive manner of oral expression
From this reading “She spoke with a very slight Cockney accent.”
part of a dress above the waist
From this reading “Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.”
having or covered with protective barbs or quills or spines or thorns or setae etc.
From this reading “She bristled with aigrettes and sparkled with jewels.”
a native of the east end of London
From this reading “She spoke with a very slight Cockney accent.”
diffusing warmth and friendliness
From this reading “PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.”
plural of “elbow” — hinge joint between the forearm and upper arm and the corresponding joint in the forelimb of a quadruped
From this reading “Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.”
plural of “sleeve” — the part of a garment that is attached at the armhole and that provides a cloth covering for the arm
From this reading “Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.”
past form of “sparkle” — reflect brightly
From this reading “She bristled with aigrettes and sparkled with jewels.”
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 She spoke with a very slight Cockney accent.
distinctive manner of oral expression
From this reading She spoke with a very slight Cockney accent.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She bristled with aigrettes and sparkled with jewels.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She bristled with aigrettes and sparkled with jewels.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
part of a dress above the waist
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
having or covered with protective barbs or quills or spines or thorns or setae etc.
From this reading She bristled with aigrettes and sparkled with jewels.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
a native of the east end of London
From this reading She spoke with a very slight Cockney accent.
diffusing warmth and friendliness
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
separate with or as if with an instrument
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
plural of “elbow” — hinge joint between the forearm and upper arm and the corresponding joint in the forelimb of a quadruped
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
plural of “friend” — a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
plural of “glove” — the handwear used by fielders in playing baseball
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
plural of “jewel” — a precious or semiprecious stone incorporated into a piece of jewelry
From this reading She bristled with aigrettes and sparkled with jewels.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
less than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
used to form the superlative
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading MRS.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
above and across; more than
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She spoke with a very slight Cockney accent.
primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
plural of “sleeve” — the part of a garment that is attached at the armhole and that provides a cloth covering for the arm
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
a deliberate discourteous act (usually as an expression of anger or disapproval)
From this reading She spoke with a very slight Cockney accent.
past form of “sparkle” — reflect brightly
From this reading She bristled with aigrettes and sparkled with jewels.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading She spoke with a very slight Cockney accent.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
precisely as stated
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
a Caucasian
From this reading Her bodice was cut very low, her sleeves very short, and her white gloves came over the braceleted elbows.
in the company of; together with
From this reading She spoke with a very slight Cockney accent.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading PICKERING "Our boys are such very great friends--I really felt I must know you!" cried Mrs. Pickering in the most cordial way.
Chapter 25 of Bird of Paradise by Ada Leverson holds 109 sentences, grouped into 22 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 25 holds 109 sentences of Bird of Paradise, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 25 of Bird of Paradise by Ada Leverson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 109 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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 25 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 Bird of Paradise by Ada Leverson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4517 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #27323 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #27323, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 376 minutes of reading across 904 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Bird of Paradise section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 36 chapters of Bird of Paradise 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 Bird of Paradise, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
