Chapter 40 of Deirdre is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XL
Chapter 40 of Deirdre is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners. “So! Naoise,” he said. “So! uncle,” said Naoise. “I win in the end.
Chapter 40 of Deirdre is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading “Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.”
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading ““I win in the end.”
destroyed or killed
From this reading “Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.”
plural of “prisoner” — a person who is confined; especially a prisoner of war
From this reading “Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Naoise,” he said.”
inflected form of “stride” — walk with long steps
From this reading “Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.”
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading ““So! uncle,” said Naoise.”
be the winner in a contest or competition; be victorious
From this reading ““I win in the end.”
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.
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading “I win in the end.
destroyed or killed
From this reading Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Naoise,” he said.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I win in the end.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “I win in the end.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Naoise,” he said.
plural of “prisoner” — a person who is confined; especially a prisoner of war
From this reading Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Naoise,” he said.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “So!
inflected form of “stride” — walk with long steps
From this reading Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “I win in the end.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Cathfa had gone away, and Conachúr strode to his prisoners.
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading “So! uncle,” said Naoise.
be the winner in a contest or competition; be victorious
From this reading “I win in the end.
Chapter 40 of Deirdre by James Stephens holds 116 sentences, grouped into 24 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 40 holds 116 sentences of Deirdre, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 40 of Deirdre by James Stephens exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 116 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 40 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 Deirdre by James Stephens on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3093 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #65950 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #65950, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 257 minutes of reading across 619 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Deirdre section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Deirdre 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 Deirdre, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
