Chapter 7 of Cane is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of Cane is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering. As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts: “JESUS WAS ONCE A LEPER!” Dan steps down. He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
Chapter 7 of Cane is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
in a dainty and fastidious manner
From this reading “Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.”
a person afflicted with leprosy
From this reading ““JESUS WAS ONCE A LEPER!””
plural of “reach” — the limits within which something can be effective
From this reading “Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.”
intense aversion
From this reading “Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.”
plural of “shout” — a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition
From this reading “As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:”
plural of “spring” — the season of growth
From this reading “As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:”
(linguistics) the form of a word after all affixes are removed
From this reading “He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.”
plural of “touch” — the event of something coming in contact with the body
From this reading “As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:”
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.
come into existence; take on form or shape
In this reading “As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:”
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 “JESUS WAS ONCE A LEPER!”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
neither warm nor very cold; giving relief from heat
From this reading He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
in a dainty and fastidious manner
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Dan steps down.
a plant cultivated for its blooms or blossoms
From this reading He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
green color or pigment; resembling the color of growing grass
From this reading He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
a teacher and prophet born in Bethlehem and active in Nazareth; his life and sermons form the basis for Christianity (circa 4 BC - AD 29)
From this reading “JESUS WAS ONCE A LEPER!”
and nothing more
From this reading He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
a person afflicted with leprosy
From this reading “JESUS WAS ONCE A LEPER!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
something offered (as a proposal or bid)
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
on one occasion
From this reading “JESUS WAS ONCE A LEPER!”
plural of “reach” — the limits within which something can be effective
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
intense aversion
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
a space reserved for sitting (as in a theater or on a train or airplane)
From this reading As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:
plural of “see” — the seat within a bishop's diocese where his cathedral is located
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
get rid of
From this reading He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
plural of “shout” — a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition
From this reading As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:
plural of “spring” — the season of growth
From this reading As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:
(linguistics) the form of a word after all affixes are removed
From this reading He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading Dan steps down.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading He is as cool as a green stem that has just shed its flower.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
closely constrained or constricted or constricting
From this reading Muriel, tight in her revulsion, sees black, and daintily reaches for the offering.
plural of “touch” — the event of something coming in contact with the body
From this reading As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading As her hand touches it, Dan springs up in his seat and shouts:
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “JESUS WAS ONCE A LEPER!”
Chapter 7 of Cane by Jean Toomer holds 401 sentences, grouped into 81 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 7 holds 401 sentences of Cane, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of Cane by Jean Toomer exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 401 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 7 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 Cane by Jean Toomer on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3606 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #60093 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #60093, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 300 minutes of reading across 722 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Cane section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of Cane 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 Cane, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
