Chapter 1 of Complete Plays of John Galsworthy is here in full — 1197 sentences across 240 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Complete Plays of John Galsworthy is here in full — 1197 sentences across 240 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
JONES. [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl. The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here. If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them. What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?
Chapter 1 of Complete Plays of John Galsworthy is here in full — 1197 sentences across 240 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/239 · 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.
with anger
From this reading “[Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.”
the placement of the fingers for playing different notes (or sequences of notes) on a musical instrument
From this reading “[Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.”
United States labor leader (born in Ireland) who helped to found the Industrial Workers of the World (1830-1930)
From this reading “JONES.”
plural of “kid” — a young person of either sex
From this reading “The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.”
a container used for carrying money and small personal items or accessories (especially by women)
From this reading “[Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.”
the territory occupied by one of the constituent administrative districts of a nation
From this reading “What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?”
fill by packing tightly
From this reading “[Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.”
the act of using
From this reading “What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?”
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 What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?
following the length of something from one end toward the other
From this reading The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.
with anger
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
(comparative of “good”) superior to another (of the same class or set or kind) in excellence or quality or desirability or suitability; more highly skilled than another
From this reading The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?
a fat-soluble vitamin that prevents rickets
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
a quad with a square body
From this reading What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?
the placement of the fingers for playing different notes (or sequences of notes) on a musical instrument
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.
a young female
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
(astronomy) the angular distance of a celestial point measured westward along the celestial equator from the zenith crossing; the right ascension for an observer at a particular location and time of day
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
United States labor leader (born in Ireland) who helped to found the Industrial Workers of the World (1830-1930)
From this reading JONES.
plural of “kid” — a young person of either sex
From this reading The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.
apprehended with certainty
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
a container used for carrying money and small personal items or accessories (especially by women)
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
the territory occupied by one of the constituent administrative districts of a nation
From this reading What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?
fill by packing tightly
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading If I 'd ha' known as much as I do now, I 'd never ha' had one o' them.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?
the act of using
From this reading What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What's the use o' bringin' 'em into a state o' things like this?
at the time that
From this reading The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.
in the company of; together with
From this reading The kids 'll get along better with you than when I 'm here.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading [Fingering the purse, half angrily.] Well, then, you stow it, old girl.
Chapter 1 of Complete Plays of John Galsworthy by John Galsworthy holds 1197 sentences, grouped into 240 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 1197 sentences of Complete Plays of John Galsworthy, unabridged, divided into 240 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Complete Plays of John Galsworthy by John Galsworthy exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 1197 sentences, grouped into 240 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 240 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 240 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 Complete Plays of John Galsworthy by John Galsworthy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 45396 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #4269 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #4269, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 9080 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Complete Plays of John Galsworthy section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of Complete Plays of John Galsworthy 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 Complete Plays of John Galsworthy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
