Chapter 4 of Black-Eyed Susan is here in full — 161 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Black-Eyed Susan is here in full — 161 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Susan was very unhappy. She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.” It was all about a little berry pie. Grandmother had made for Susan’s dinner a saucer pie. It was juicy and brown and had fancy little crimps all about the edge.
Chapter 4 of Black-Eyed Susan is here in full — 161 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/32 · 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.
any of numerous small and pulpy edible fruits; used as desserts or in making jams and jellies and preserves
From this reading “It was all about a little berry pie.”
plural of “crimp” — an angular or rounded shape made by folding
From this reading “It was juicy and brown and had fancy little crimps all about the edge.”
the mother of your father or mother
From this reading “Grandmother had made for Susan’s dinner a saucer pie.”
full of juice
From this reading “It was juicy and brown and had fancy little crimps all about the edge.”
drive or propel with the foot
From this reading “She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.””
a rhythmic thrusting movement of the legs as in swimming or calisthenics
From this reading “She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.””
dish baked in pastry-lined pan often with a pastry top
From this reading “It was all about a little berry pie.”
something with a round shape resembling a flat circular plate
From this reading “Grandmother had made for Susan’s dinner a saucer pie.”
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 “She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.””
In this reading “She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.””
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 It was all about a little berry pie.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading It was all about a little berry pie.
(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 It was all about a little berry pie.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
a room used primarily for sleeping
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
any of numerous small and pulpy edible fruits; used as desserts or in making jams and jellies and preserves
From this reading It was all about a little berry pie.
an orange of low brightness and saturation
From this reading It was juicy and brown and had fancy little crimps all about the edge.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
plural of “crimp” — an angular or rounded shape made by folding
From this reading It was juicy and brown and had fancy little crimps all about the edge.
the main meal of the day served in the evening or at midday
From this reading Grandmother had made for Susan’s dinner a saucer pie.
the boundary of a surface
From this reading It was juicy and brown and had fancy little crimps all about the edge.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
something many people believe that is false
From this reading It was juicy and brown and had fancy little crimps all about the edge.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Grandmother had made for Susan’s dinner a saucer pie.
the mother of your father or mother
From this reading Grandmother had made for Susan’s dinner a saucer pie.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Grandmother had made for Susan’s dinner a saucer pie.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was all about a little berry pie.
full of juice
From this reading It was juicy and brown and had fancy little crimps all about the edge.
drive or propel with the foot
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
a rhythmic thrusting movement of the legs as in swimming or calisthenics
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading It was all about a little berry pie.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Grandmother had made for Susan’s dinner a saucer pie.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
dish baked in pastry-lined pan often with a pastry top
From this reading It was all about a little berry pie.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
something with a round shape resembling a flat circular plate
From this reading Grandmother had made for Susan’s dinner a saucer pie.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Susan was very unhappy.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Grandmother had made for Susan’s dinner a saucer pie.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
experiencing or marked by or causing sadness or sorrow or discontent
From this reading Susan was very unhappy.
precisely as stated
From this reading Susan was very unhappy.
an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Susan was very unhappy.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading She stood by her bedroom window, kicking the wall, and at every kick she said, “mean, mean, mean.”
Chapter 4 of Black-Eyed Susan by Ethel Calvert Phillips holds 161 sentences, grouped into 33 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 4 holds 161 sentences of Black-Eyed Susan, unabridged, divided into 33 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Black-Eyed Susan by Ethel Calvert Phillips exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 161 sentences, grouped into 33 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 33 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 33 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 4 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 Black-Eyed Susan by Ethel Calvert Phillips on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1931 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #38835 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #38835, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 160 minutes of reading across 387 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Black-Eyed Susan section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Black-Eyed Susan 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 Black-Eyed Susan, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
