Chapter 32 of Boswell's Life of Johnson Abridged and is here in full — 256 sentences across 52 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXII
Chapter 32 of Boswell's Life of Johnson Abridged and is here in full — 256 sentences across 52 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation. BOSWELL. 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?' JOHNSON. 'They play the trick, but it does not make the fire burn.
Chapter 32 of Boswell's Life of Johnson Abridged and is here in full — 256 sentences across 52 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/51 · 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.
Scottish author noted for his biography of Samuel Johnson (1740-1795)
From this reading “BOSWELL.”
To consume or be consumed by fire.
From this reading “'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'”
a frame of iron bars to hold a fire
From this reading “'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'”
English writer and lexicographer (1709-1784)
From this reading “JOHNSON.”
discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of
From this reading “'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'”
hitting a golf ball that is on the green using a putter
From this reading “'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'”
a hand tool for lifting loose material; consists of a curved container or scoop and a handle
From this reading “'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'”
a cunning or deceitful action or device
From this reading “'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'”
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 I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
Scottish author noted for his biography of Samuel Johnson (1740-1795)
From this reading BOSWELL.
To consume or be consumed by fire.
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading 'They play the trick, but it does not make the fire burn.
the use of speech for informal exchange of views or ideas or information etc.
From this reading I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading 'They play the trick, but it does not make the fire burn.
start firing a weapon
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
a frame of iron bars to hold a fire
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
English writer and lexicographer (1709-1784)
From this reading JOHNSON.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
engage in
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading 'They play the trick, but it does not make the fire burn.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
participate in games or sport
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
hitting a golf ball that is on the green using a putter
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
characterized by an absence or near absence of agitation or activity
From this reading I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
a hand tool for lifting loose material; consists of a curved container or scoop and a handle
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
term of address for a man
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading 'They play the trick, but it does not make the fire burn.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
a cunning or deceitful action or device
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
at the time that
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
in the company of; together with
From this reading I went home with him, and we had a long quiet conversation.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading 'Why, Sir, do people play this trick which I observe now, when I look at your grate, putting the shovel against it to make the fire burn?'
Chapter 32 of Boswell's Life of Johnson Abridged and by James Boswell holds 256 sentences, grouped into 52 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 32 holds 256 sentences of Boswell's Life of Johnson Abridged and, unabridged, divided into 52 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 32 of Boswell's Life of Johnson Abridged and by James Boswell exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 256 sentences, grouped into 52 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 52 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 52 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 32 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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Yes. All 10543 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1564 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1564, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2109 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Boswell's Life of Johnson Abridged and section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Boswell's Life of Johnson Abridged and 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 Boswell's Life of Johnson Abridged and, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
