Chapter 9 of Comic Tragedies is here in full — 439 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Comic Tragedies is here in full — 439 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Zuleika. Come, let us on! The moments speed. The darkening gloom befriends us. First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
Chapter 9 of Comic Tragedies is here in full — 439 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/87 · 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.
cause to come to know personally
From this reading “First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.”
third-person singular of “befriend” — become friends with
From this reading “The darkening gloom befriends us.”
of short duration or distance
From this reading “First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.”
becoming dark or darker as from waning light or clouding over
From this reading “The darkening gloom befriends us.”
a short trip that is taken in the performance of a necessary task or mission
From this reading “First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.”
a state of partial or total darkness
From this reading “The darkening gloom befriends us.”
an old form of “shall”, used with “thou”
From this reading “First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.”
a portable shelter (usually of canvas stretched over supporting poles and fastened to the ground with ropes and pegs)
From this reading “First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.”
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 “First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.”
watch over so as to protect
In this reading “First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.”
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.
cause to come to know personally
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
third-person singular of “befriend” — become friends with
From this reading The darkening gloom befriends us.
of short duration or distance
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Come, let us on!
becoming dark or darker as from waning light or clouding over
From this reading The darkening gloom befriends us.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
a short trip that is taken in the performance of a necessary task or mission
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
a state of partial or total darkness
From this reading The darkening gloom befriends us.
a person who keeps watch over something or someone
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading Come, let us on!
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
plural of “moment” — a particular point in time
From this reading The moments speed.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Come, let us on!
a male member of a royal family other than the sovereign (especially the son of a sovereign)
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
an old form of “shall”, used with “thou”
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
the act of delivering a formal spoken communication to an audience
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
move hurridly
From this reading The moments speed.
a portable shelter (usually of canvas stretched over supporting poles and fastened to the ground with ropes and pegs)
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The moments speed.
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Come, let us on!
during the time that
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
in the company of; together with
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading First to the tent of the young prince, and while I in brief speech do acquaint him with mine errand, thou shalt keep guard without.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Zuleika.
Chapter 9 of Comic Tragedies by Louisa May Alcott holds 439 sentences, grouped into 88 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 9 holds 439 sentences of Comic Tragedies, unabridged, divided into 88 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Comic Tragedies by Louisa May Alcott exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 439 sentences, grouped into 88 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 88 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 88 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 Comic Tragedies by Louisa May Alcott on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4770 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #33986 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #33986, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 397 minutes of reading across 954 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Comic Tragedies section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of Comic Tragedies 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 Comic Tragedies, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
