Chapter 9 of Childhood is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Childhood is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself. “The way is closed for me to friendship, love, and fame! All, all is lost!” Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me? Why had that disgusting princess looked at my legs?
Chapter 9 of Childhood is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 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.
look down on with disdain
From this reading ““Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.”
third-person singular of “despise” — look down on with disdain
From this reading ““Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.”
highly offensive; arousing aversion or disgust
From this reading “Why had that disgusting princess looked at my legs?”
the state or quality of being widely honored and acclaimed
From this reading ““The way is closed for me to friendship, love, and fame!”
the state of being friends (or friendly)
From this reading ““The way is closed for me to friendship, love, and fame!”
staying power
From this reading “Why had that disgusting princess looked at my legs?”
The daughter of a monarch; a female member of a royal family.
From this reading “Why had that disgusting princess looked at my legs?”
plural of “sign” — a perceptible indication of something not immediately apparent (as a visible clue that something has happened)
From this reading “Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?”
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.
(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 All, all is lost!”
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Why had that disgusting princess looked at my legs?
not open or affording passage or access
From this reading “The way is closed for me to friendship, love, and fame!
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
look down on with disdain
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
third-person singular of “despise” — look down on with disdain
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
highly offensive; arousing aversion or disgust
From this reading Why had that disgusting princess looked at my legs?
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
the state or quality of being widely honored and acclaimed
From this reading “The way is closed for me to friendship, love, and fame!
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “The way is closed for me to friendship, love, and fame!
the state of being friends (or friendly)
From this reading “The way is closed for me to friendship, love, and fame!
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “The way is closed for me to friendship, love, and fame!
staying power
From this reading Why had that disgusting princess looked at my legs?
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Why had that disgusting princess looked at my legs?
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading All, all is lost!”
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading “The way is closed for me to friendship, love, and fame!
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Why had that disgusting princess looked at my legs?
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
not any; not one
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
The daughter of a monarch; a female member of a royal family.
From this reading Why had that disgusting princess looked at my legs?
cut with a saw
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
plural of “sign” — a perceptible indication of something not immediately apparent (as a visible clue that something has happened)
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Why had that disgusting princess looked at my legs?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “The way is closed for me to friendship, love, and fame!
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading “The way is closed for me to friendship, love, and fame!
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading “Every one despises me, and will always despise me,” I thought to myself.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
but in spite of that
From this reading Why had Woloda made signs to me which every one saw, yet which could in no way help me?
Chapter 9 of Childhood by Leo, graf Tolstoy holds 160 sentences, grouped into 32 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 9 holds 160 sentences of Childhood, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Childhood by Leo, graf Tolstoy exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 160 sentences, grouped into 32 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 32 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 32 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 9 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 Childhood by Leo, graf Tolstoy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1802 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2142 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2142, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 150 minutes of reading across 361 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Childhood section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of Childhood 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 Childhood, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
