Chapter 4 of Claude's Confession is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Claude's Confession is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth. I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow. I surprised myself singing, as I prepared for a night of toil. The mansarde laughed to find itself warm and luminous. As I sat down, I heard on the stairway the sound of voices and hurried steps.
Chapter 4 of Claude's Confession is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/20 · 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.
plural of “candle” — stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading “I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.”
an open recess in a wall at the base of a chimney where a fire can be built
From this reading “TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.”
softly bright or radiant
From this reading “The mansarde laughed to find itself warm and luminous.”
the next day
From this reading “I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.”
in spite of everything; without regard to drawbacks
From this reading “I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.”
a way of access (upward and downward) consisting of a set of steps
From this reading “As I sat down, I heard on the stairway the sound of voices and hurried steps.”
something that seduces or has the quality to seduce
From this reading “TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.”
work hard
From this reading “I surprised myself singing, as I prepared for a night of toil.”
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.
In this reading “TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.”
In this reading “As I sat down, I heard on the stairway the sound of voices and hurried steps.”
In this reading “I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.”
In this reading “TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.”
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 TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading I surprised myself singing, as I prepared for a night of toil.
the two together, not just one
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
From this reading TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.
plural of “candle” — stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading As I sat down, I heard on the stairway the sound of voices and hurried steps.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading The mansarde laughed to find itself warm and luminous.
start firing a weapon
From this reading TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading I surprised myself singing, as I prepared for a night of toil.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading As I sat down, I heard on the stairway the sound of voices and hurried steps.
an open recess in a wall at the base of a chimney where a fire can be built
From this reading TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.
moving rapidly or performed quickly or in great haste
From this reading As I sat down, I heard on the stairway the sound of voices and hurried steps.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.
used when the thing doing the action is also its object
From this reading The mansarde laughed to find itself warm and luminous.
immediately past
From this reading TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading The mansarde laughed to find itself warm and luminous.
set afire or burning
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
softly bright or radiant
From this reading The mansarde laughed to find itself warm and luminous.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The mansarde laughed to find itself warm and luminous.
the next day
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading I surprised myself singing, as I prepared for a night of toil.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading I surprised myself singing, as I prepared for a night of toil.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.
made ready or fit or suitable beforehand
From this reading I surprised myself singing, as I prepared for a night of toil.
in spite of everything; without regard to drawbacks
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
possessing material wealth
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading As I sat down, I heard on the stairway the sound of voices and hurried steps.
the act of singing vocal music
From this reading I surprised myself singing, as I prepared for a night of toil.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading As I sat down, I heard on the stairway the sound of voices and hurried steps.
a way of access (upward and downward) consisting of a set of steps
From this reading As I sat down, I heard on the stairway the sound of voices and hurried steps.
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading As I sat down, I heard on the stairway the sound of voices and hurried steps.
taken unawares or suddenly and feeling wonder or astonishment
From this reading I surprised myself singing, as I prepared for a night of toil.
something that seduces or has the quality to seduce
From this reading TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading TEMPTATION Last evening, I had a bright fire on the hearth.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
work hard
From this reading I surprised myself singing, as I prepared for a night of toil.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
plural of “voice” — the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading As I sat down, I heard on the stairway the sound of voices and hurried steps.
having or producing a comfortable and agreeable degree of heat or imparting or maintaining heat
From this reading The mansarde laughed to find itself warm and luminous.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was rich enough to have two candles, and had lighted them both, regardless of the morrow.
Chapter 4 of Claude's Confession by Émile Zola holds 104 sentences, grouped into 21 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 4 holds 104 sentences of Claude's Confession, unabridged, divided into 21 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Claude's Confession by Émile Zola exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 104 sentences, grouped into 21 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 21 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 21 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 4 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 Claude's Confession by Émile Zola on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3129 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #63819 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #63819, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 260 minutes of reading across 626 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Claude's Confession section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 29 chapters of Claude's Confession 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 Claude's Confession, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
