Chapter 5 of Les Misérables is here in full — 158 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Les Misérables is here in full — 158 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
His conversation was gay and affable. He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him. When he laughed, it was the laugh of a schoolboy. Madame Magloire liked to call him Your Grace [_Votre Grandeur_]. One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.
Chapter 5 of Les Misérables is here in full — 158 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/31 · 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.
diffusing warmth and friendliness
From this reading “His conversation was gay and affable.”
chair with a support on each side for arms
From this reading “One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.”
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading “His conversation was gay and affable.”
the quality of being magnificent or splendid or grand
a position on a scale of intensity or amount or quality
From this reading “He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.”
a room where books are kept
From this reading “One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.”
a boy attending school
From this reading “When he laughed, it was the laugh of a schoolboy.”
try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of
From this reading “One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.”
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.
a woman who is old
In this reading “He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.”
In this reading “He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.”
In this reading “One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.”
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 He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
diffusing warmth and friendliness
From this reading His conversation was gay and affable.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading His conversation was gay and affable.
chair with a support on each side for arms
From this reading One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.
next to; at the side of
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
a written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)
From this reading One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading Madame Magloire liked to call him Your Grace [_Votre Grandeur_].
the use of speech for informal exchange of views or ideas or information etc.
From this reading His conversation was gay and affable.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading His conversation was gay and affable.
(Christian theology) a state of sanctification by God; the state of one who is under such divine influence
From this reading Madame Magloire liked to call him Your Grace [_Votre Grandeur_].
the quality of being magnificent or splendid or grand
From this reading Madame Magloire liked to call him Your Grace [_Votre Grandeur_].
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His conversation was gay and affable.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading When he laughed, it was the laugh of a schoolboy.
the sound of laughing
From this reading When he laughed, it was the laugh of a schoolboy.
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading When he laughed, it was the laugh of a schoolboy.
a position on a scale of intensity or amount or quality
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
a room where books are kept
From this reading One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.
found pleasant or attractive; often used as a combining form
From this reading Madame Magloire liked to call him Your Grace [_Votre Grandeur_].
plural of “life” — a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
title used for a married Frenchwoman
From this reading Madame Magloire liked to call him Your Grace [_Votre Grandeur_].
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Madame Magloire liked to call him Your Grace [_Votre Grandeur_].
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading When he laughed, it was the laugh of a schoolboy.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.
a boy attending school
From this reading When he laughed, it was the laugh of a schoolboy.
try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of
From this reading One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Madame Magloire liked to call him Your Grace [_Votre Grandeur_].
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Madame Magloire liked to call him Your Grace [_Votre Grandeur_].
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading His conversation was gay and affable.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading One day he rose from his armchair, and went to his library in search of a book.
at the time that
From this reading When he laughed, it was the laugh of a schoolboy.
which person or people
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
in the company of; together with
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading He put himself on a level with the two old women who had passed their lives beside him.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Madame Magloire liked to call him Your Grace [_Votre Grandeur_].
Chapter 5 of Les Misérables by Victor Hugo holds 158 sentences, grouped into 32 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 5 holds 158 sentences of Les Misérables, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Les Misérables by Victor Hugo exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 158 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 5 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 Les Misérables by Victor Hugo on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Les Misérables section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Les Misérables 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 Les Misérables, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
