Chapter 4 of Clue of the Silken Ladder is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Clue of the Silken Ladder is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Surely you don't believe in ghosts...?" Penny began, but the seamstress did not hear. Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine. Then we went to bed. Neither of us had gone to sleep when suddenly we heard it!"
Chapter 4 of Clue of the Silken Ladder is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
move gently or carefully
From this reading “Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.”
plural of “ghost” — a mental representation of some haunting experience
From this reading “"Surely you don't believe in ghosts...?"”
any mechanical or electrical device that transmits or modifies energy to perform or assist in the performance of human tasks
From this reading “Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.”
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading “Penny began, but the seamstress did not hear.”
past form of “resume” — take up or begin anew
From this reading “Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.”
inflected form of “rub” — move over something with pressure
From this reading “Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.”
someone who makes or mends dresses
From this reading “Penny began, but the seamstress did not hear.”
actively engaged in paid work
From this reading “Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.”
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 “Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.”
have a firm conviction as to the goodness of something
In this reading “"Surely you don't believe in ghosts...?"”
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.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading Then we went to bed.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading Penny began, but the seamstress did not hear.
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading "Surely you don't believe in ghosts...?"
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Penny began, but the seamstress did not hear.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Penny began, but the seamstress did not hear.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Surely you don't believe in ghosts...?"
move gently or carefully
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
plural of “ghost” — a mental representation of some haunting experience
From this reading "Surely you don't believe in ghosts...?"
destroyed or killed
From this reading Neither of us had gone to sleep when suddenly we heard it!"
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Neither of us had gone to sleep when suddenly we heard it!"
perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading Penny began, but the seamstress did not hear.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading Neither of us had gone to sleep when suddenly we heard it!"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Surely you don't believe in ghosts...?"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Neither of us had gone to sleep when suddenly we heard it!"
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
any mechanical or electrical device that transmits or modifies energy to perform or assist in the performance of human tasks
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
not one and not the other of two
From this reading Neither of us had gone to sleep when suddenly we heard it!"
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Penny began, but the seamstress did not hear.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Neither of us had gone to sleep when suddenly we heard it!"
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
a symptom of some physical hurt or disorder
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading Penny began, but the seamstress did not hear.
past form of “resume” — take up or begin anew
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
inflected form of “rub” — move over something with pressure
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
someone who makes or mends dresses
From this reading Penny began, but the seamstress did not hear.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading Neither of us had gone to sleep when suddenly we heard it!"
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Neither of us had gone to sleep when suddenly we heard it!"
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading "Surely you don't believe in ghosts...?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Penny began, but the seamstress did not hear.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then we went to bed.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
marked by or paying little heed or attention
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Neither of us had gone to sleep when suddenly we heard it!"
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading Then we went to bed.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Then we went to bed.
at the time that
From this reading Neither of us had gone to sleep when suddenly we heard it!"
actively engaged in paid work
From this reading Unheeding, she resumed: "Pa rubbed my back to ease the pain I get from working too long at the machine.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Surely you don't believe in ghosts...?"
Chapter 4 of Clue of the Silken Ladder by Mildred A. (Mildred Augustine) Wirt holds 412 sentences, grouped into 83 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 412 sentences of Clue of the Silken Ladder, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Clue of the Silken Ladder by Mildred A. (Mildred Augustine) Wirt exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 412 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 Clue of the Silken Ladder by Mildred A. (Mildred Augustine) Wirt on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3711 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34591 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34591, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 309 minutes of reading across 743 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Clue of the Silken Ladder section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of Clue of the Silken Ladder 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 Clue of the Silken Ladder, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
