Chapter 31 of December Love is here in full — 476 sentences across 96 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXI
Chapter 31 of December Love is here in full — 476 sentences across 96 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase. Her sacrifice of self was surely complete at last. She had exposed her nature naked to Beryl Van Tuyn. She had given up her friendship with Alick Craven. There was nothing more for her to do.
Chapter 31 of December Love is here in full — 476 sentences across 96 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/95 · 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.
the chief source of beryllium; colored transparent varieties are valued as gems
From this reading “She had exposed her nature naked to Beryl Van Tuyn.”
lacking even the rudiments of courage; abjectly fearful
From this reading “After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.”
with no protection or shield
From this reading “She had exposed her nature naked to Beryl Van Tuyn.”
a lining applied to the edge of a garment for ornamentation or strengthening
From this reading “After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.”
completely unclothed
From this reading “She had exposed her nature naked to Beryl Van Tuyn.”
any distinct time period in a sequence of events
From this reading “After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.”
the act of losing or surrendering something as a penalty for a mistake or fault or failure to perform etc.
From this reading “Her sacrifice of self was surely complete at last.”
your consciousness of your own identity
From this reading “Her sacrifice of self was surely complete at last.”
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 After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
later than; following
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She had given up her friendship with Alick Craven.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Her sacrifice of self was surely complete at last.
the chief source of beryllium; colored transparent varieties are valued as gems
From this reading She had exposed her nature naked to Beryl Van Tuyn.
come or bring to a finish or an end
From this reading Her sacrifice of self was surely complete at last.
lacking even the rudiments of courage; abjectly fearful
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading There was nothing more for her to do.
with no protection or shield
From this reading She had exposed her nature naked to Beryl Van Tuyn.
a lining applied to the edge of a garment for ornamentation or strengthening
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading There was nothing more for her to do.
the state of being friends (or friendly)
From this reading She had given up her friendship with Alick Craven.
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading She had given up her friendship with Alick Craven.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
a polite name for any woman
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
immediately past
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading There was nothing more for her to do.
completely unclothed
From this reading She had exposed her nature naked to Beryl Van Tuyn.
the essential qualities or characteristics by which something is recognized
From this reading She had exposed her nature naked to Beryl Van Tuyn.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
a brief written record
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading There was nothing more for her to do.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
any distinct time period in a sequence of events
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
the act of losing or surrendering something as a penalty for a mistake or fault or failure to perform etc.
From this reading Her sacrifice of self was surely complete at last.
your consciousness of your own identity
From this reading Her sacrifice of self was surely complete at last.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
100 senti equal 1 kroon in Estonia
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading Her sacrifice of self was surely complete at last.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was nothing more for her to do.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She had exposed her nature naked to Beryl Van Tuyn.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading She had given up her friendship with Alick Craven.
any creative group active in the innovation and application of new concepts and techniques in a given field (especially in the arts)
From this reading She had exposed her nature naked to Beryl Van Tuyn.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
in the company of; together with
From this reading She had given up her friendship with Alick Craven.
set down in writing in any of various ways
From this reading After Lady Sellingworth had written and sent her note to Craven she felt that she was facing a new phase of life, and she thought of it as the last phase.
Chapter 31 of December Love by Robert Hichens holds 476 sentences, grouped into 96 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 31 holds 476 sentences of December Love, unabridged, divided into 96 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 31 of December Love by Robert Hichens exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 476 sentences, grouped into 96 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 96 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 96 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 31 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 December Love by Robert Hichens on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 15739 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #6616 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #6616, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 3148 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through December Love section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of December Love 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 December Love, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
