Chapter 1 of Chains: A Play, in Four Acts is here in full — 443 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Chains: A Play, in Four Acts is here in full — 443 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
LILY. And we have always got on so very well together. I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again. But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR. And if anything striking occurs, I'll send a cable.
Chapter 1 of Chains: A Play, in Four Acts is here in full — 443 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/88 · 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.
speak to
From this reading “But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.”
any person at all
From this reading “I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.”
a telegram sent abroad
From this reading “And if anything striking occurs, I'll send a cable.”
a charred substance
From this reading “But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.”
any liliaceous plant of the genus Lilium having showy pendulous flowers
From this reading “LILY.”
third-person singular of “occur” — come to pass
From this reading “And if anything striking occurs, I'll send a cable.”
sensational in appearance or thrilling in effect
From this reading “And if anything striking occurs, I'll send a cable.”
be agreeable or acceptable to
From this reading “I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.”
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.
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 And if anything striking occurs, I'll send a cable.
speak to
From this reading But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.
anew
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading And we have always got on so very well together.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And we have always got on so very well together.
any person at all
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
any thing at all
From this reading And if anything striking occurs, I'll send a cable.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.
a telegram sent abroad
From this reading And if anything striking occurs, I'll send a cable.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.
a charred substance
From this reading But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
dismiss from the mind; stop remembering
From this reading But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading And we have always got on so very well together.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading And we have always got on so very well together.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And if anything striking occurs, I'll send a cable.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
any liliaceous plant of the genus Lilium having showy pendulous flowers
From this reading LILY.
third-person singular of “occur” — come to pass
From this reading And if anything striking occurs, I'll send a cable.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading And we have always got on so very well together.
cause to go somewhere
From this reading And if anything striking occurs, I'll send a cable.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading And we have always got on so very well together.
on certain occasions or in certain cases but not always
From this reading But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.
sensational in appearance or thrilling in effect
From this reading And if anything striking occurs, I'll send a cable.
be agreeable or acceptable to
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
in contact with each other or in proximity
From this reading And we have always got on so very well together.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
precisely as stated
From this reading And we have always got on so very well together.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading And we have always got on so very well together.
(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 And we have always got on so very well together.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading I'm sure it will be very difficult to get anyone to suit us so well again.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.
produce a literary work
From this reading But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading But you won't forget us and if we have your address, we can write sometimes-- CHAR.
Chapter 1 of Chains: A Play, in Four Acts by Elizabeth Baker holds 443 sentences, grouped into 89 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 1 holds 443 sentences of Chains: A Play, in Four Acts, unabridged, divided into 89 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Chains: A Play, in Four Acts by Elizabeth Baker exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 443 sentences, grouped into 89 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 89 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 89 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 1 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 Chains: A Play, in Four Acts by Elizabeth Baker on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2642 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #46240 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #46240, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 220 minutes of reading across 529 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Chains: A Play, in Four Acts section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of Chains: A Play, in Four Acts 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 Chains: A Play, in Four Acts, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
