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Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell
Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell

Chapter XII · Chapter 12

Chapter 12 of Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell is here in full — 621 sentences across 125 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

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Context Illustration Reading 1/124 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
FROM WITHOUT AND FROM WITHIN.
There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.
Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.
There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.
If they had had the charge of her, they'd have brought her down.
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Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell

Chapter XII · Chapter 12

Chapter 12 of Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell is here in full — 621 sentences across 125 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/124 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
FROM WITHOUT AND FROM WITHIN.
/frʌm wɪˈθaʊt ənd frʌm wɪˈðɪn/
Line 2
There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.
Line 3
Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.
/sʌm wɜːr ʌv əˈpɪnjən ðæt ðə ɡreɪt mɪˈsteɪk wɑːz ɪn nɑːt ˈbreɪkɪŋ hɜːr wɪl wen ʃiː wɑːz ə ˈlɪtəl tʃaɪld/
Line 4
There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.
/ðer wɑːz ˈnʌθɪŋ ðə ˈmætər wɪð hɜːr ðeɪ sed bʌt ðæt ʃiː hæd bɪn spɔɪld baɪ ˌɪnˈdʌldʒəns/
Line 5
If they had had the charge of her, they'd have brought her down.

Learner Dictionary

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.

accused noun US /əˈkjuːzd/

a defendant in a criminal proceeding

From this reading “There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.”

breaking noun US /ˈbreɪkɪŋ/

the act of breaking something

From this reading “Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.”

indulgence noun US /ˌɪnˈdʌldʒəns/

an inability to resist the gratification of whims and desires

From this reading “There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.”

judgment noun US /ˈdʒʌdʒmənt/

an opinion formed by judging something

From this reading “There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.”

spoiled adjective US /spɔɪld/

having the character or disposition harmed by pampering or oversolicitous attention

From this reading “There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.”

treatment noun US /ˈtriːtmənt/

care provided to improve a situation (especially medical procedures or applications that are intended to relieve illness or injury)

From this reading “There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.”

wanting adjective US /ˈwɑːntɪŋ/

nonexistent

From this reading “There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.”

weakness noun US /ˈwiːknəs/

a flaw or weak point

From this reading “There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.”

All words in this reading · 53

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

accusednounUS /əˈkjuːzd/

a defendant in a criminal proceeding

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

ANDconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading FROM WITHOUT AND FROM WITHIN.

badadjectiveUS /bæd/

having undesirable or negative qualities

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.

breakingnounUS /ˈbreɪkɪŋ/

the act of breaking something

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

broughtverbUS /brɔːt/

inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere

From this reading If they had had the charge of her, they'd have brought her down.

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.

chargeverbUS /tʃɑːrdʒ/

to make a rush at or sudden attack upon, as in battle

From this reading If they had had the charge of her, they'd have brought her down.

childnounUS /tʃaɪld/

a young person of either sex

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

daughternounUS /ˈdɔːtər/

a female human offspring

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

downadjectiveUS /daʊn/

being or moving lower in position or less in some value

From this reading If they had had the charge of her, they'd have brought her down.

Dudley

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

FROMprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading FROM WITHOUT AND FROM WITHIN.

greatadjectiveUS /ɡreɪt/

relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading If they had had the charge of her, they'd have brought her down.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

IfconjunctionUS /ɪf/

on condition that; in the event that

From this reading If they had had the charge of her, they'd have brought her down.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

indulgencenounUS /ˌɪnˈdʌldʒəns/

an inability to resist the gratification of whims and desires

From this reading There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.

judgmentnounUS /ˈdʒʌdʒmənt/

an opinion formed by judging something

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

littleadjectiveUS /ˈlɪtəl/

limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

matternounUS /ˈmætər/

a vaguely specified concern

From this reading There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.

mistakenounUS /mɪˈsteɪk/

a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

nothingpronounUS /ˈnʌθɪŋ/

not one thing; not anything

From this reading There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

opinionnounUS /əˈpɪnjən/

a personal belief or judgment that is not founded on proof or certainty

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

peoplenounUS /ˈpiːpəl/

(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

saidadjectiveUS /sed/

being the one previously mentioned or spoken of

From this reading There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

SomeadjectiveUS /sʌm/

(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

spoiledadjectiveUS /spɔɪld/

having the character or disposition harmed by pampering or oversolicitous attention

From this reading There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

ThereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.

they'd

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading If they had had the charge of her, they'd have brought her down.

treatmentnounUS /ˈtriːtmənt/

care provided to improve a situation (especially medical procedures or applications that are intended to relieve illness or injury)

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

VENNER

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

wantingadjectiveUS /ˈwɑːntɪŋ/

nonexistent

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

weaknessnounUS /ˈwiːknəs/

a flaw or weak point

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading There were not wanting people who accused Dudley VENNER of weakness and bad judgment in his treatment of his daughter.

willmodal verbUS /wɪl/

used to talk about the future, or about willingness

From this reading Some were of opinion that the great mistake was in not "breaking her will" when she was a little child.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading There was nothing the matter with her, they said, but that she had been spoiled by indulgence.

WITHINprepositionUS /wɪˈðɪn/

inside; before a period of time has passed

From this reading FROM WITHOUT AND FROM WITHIN.

WITHOUTprepositionUS /wɪˈθaʊt/

not having, not using, or not accompanied by

From this reading FROM WITHOUT AND FROM WITHIN.

Chapter 12 of Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell by Oliver Wendell Holmes holds 621 sentences, grouped into 125 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.

What does chapter 12 of Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell contain?

Chapter 12 holds 621 sentences of Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell, unabridged, divided into 125 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 12 of Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell by Oliver Wendell Holmes exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 621 sentences, grouped into 125 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.

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Each of the 125 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.

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Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 12 can be played aloud in United States English.

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Words and structures a reader meets early in Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

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Interrupted
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