Chapter 1 of Christian's Mistake is here in full — 279 sentences across 56 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Christian's Mistake is here in full — 279 sentences across 56 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
You'll come down stairs presently?" "Yes." But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door. The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face. She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
Chapter 1 of Christian's Mistake is here in full — 279 sentences across 56 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 43/55 · 5 reading units · Lines 211–215
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.
presently existing in fact and not merely potential or possible
From this reading “The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.”
get or gather together
From this reading “She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.”
past form of “lock” — fasten with a lock
From this reading “But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door.”
not in physical motion
From this reading “She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.”
a collection of things wrapped or boxed together
From this reading “She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.”
established irrevocably
From this reading “She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.”
the act of causing something to move up and down (or back and forth) with quick movements
From this reading “She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.”
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading “You'll come down stairs presently?"”
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 She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
presently existing in fact and not merely potential or possible
From this reading The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.
(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 She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door.
relating to or characteristic of Christianity
From this reading But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door.
get or gather together
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading You'll come down stairs presently?"
placed crosswise
From this reading The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading You'll come down stairs presently?"
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.
be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event
From this reading The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
destroyed or killed
From this reading But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
a very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat)
From this reading But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door.
past form of “lock” — fasten with a lock
From this reading But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.
not in physical motion
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.
a collection of things wrapped or boxed together
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
a symptom of some physical hurt or disorder
From this reading The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.
in the near future
From this reading You'll come down stairs presently?"
Identical; not different.
From this reading The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.
established irrevocably
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
the act of causing something to move up and down (or back and forth) with quick movements
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading You'll come down stairs presently?"
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading The same look, of more than pain--actual fear--crossed her face.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
hard to endure
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading But the instant Mrs. Ferguson was gone Christian locked the door.
in the company of; together with
From this reading She stood motionless, as if trying to collect herself, and then, with her hands all shaking, took from her traveling-trunk a sealed packet.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You'll come down stairs presently?"
Chapter 1 of Christian's Mistake by Dinah Maria Mulock Craik holds 279 sentences, grouped into 56 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 279 sentences of Christian's Mistake, unabridged, divided into 56 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Christian's Mistake by Dinah Maria Mulock Craik exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 279 sentences, grouped into 56 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 56 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 56 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 Christian's Mistake by Dinah Maria Mulock Craik on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3238 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #14687 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #14687, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 269 minutes of reading across 648 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Christian's Mistake section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 16 chapters of Christian's Mistake 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 Christian's Mistake, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
