Chapter 38 of Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Volume 1, Romaunt of the Rose is here in full — 707 sentences across 142 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXVIII
Chapter 38 of Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Volume 1, Romaunt of the Rose is here in full — 707 sentences across 142 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
31. Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l. 58. 32. _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
Chapter 38 of Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Volume 1, Romaunt of the Rose is here in full — 707 sentences across 142 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/141 · 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.
events that provide the generative force that is the origin of something
From this reading “Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.”
past form of “die” — pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading “_Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.”
very thin especially from disease or hunger or cold
From this reading “_Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.”
imperial dynasty that ruled China (most of the time from 206 BC to AD 220) and expanded its boundaries and developed its bureaucracy; remembered as one of the great eras of Chinese civilization
From this reading “Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.”
a brief written record
From this reading “_Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.”
by chance
From this reading “_Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.”
legally valid
From this reading “Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.”
an old word for “you”, as the object, speaking to one person
From this reading “Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 31.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 32.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 58.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
events that provide the generative force that is the origin of something
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
a radioactive transuranic element; discovered by bombarding curium with alpha particles
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
past form of “die” — pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
very thin especially from disease or hunger or cold
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
imperial dynasty that ruled China (most of the time from 206 BC to AD 220) and expanded its boundaries and developed its bureaucracy; remembered as one of the great eras of Chinese civilization
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
a specific instance of feeling hopeful
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
a state in the Rocky Mountains
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
a metric unit of capacity, formerly defined as the volume of one kilogram of pure water under standard conditions; now equal to 1,000 cubic centimeters (or approximately 1.75 pints)
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
a brief written record
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
by chance
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
legally valid
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
an old word for “you”, as the object, speaking to one person
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
an old word for “your”, speaking to one person
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
which person or people
From this reading _Thy beste frend_; possibly John of Gaunt, who died in 1399; but see note to l.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cf. 'what eek yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit beter thinges?' id. l.
Chapter 38 of Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Volume 1, Romaunt of the Rose by Geoffrey Chaucer holds 707 sentences, grouped into 142 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 38 holds 707 sentences of Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Volume 1, Romaunt of the Rose, unabridged, divided into 142 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 38 of Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Volume 1, Romaunt of the Rose by Geoffrey Chaucer exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 707 sentences, grouped into 142 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 142 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 142 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 38 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 26237 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #43089 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #43089, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 5248 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Volume 1, Romaunt of the Rose section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Volume 1, Romaunt of the Rose 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 Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 — Volume 1, Romaunt of the Rose, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
