Chapter 8 of Doctor Claudius, A True Story is here in full — 339 sentences across 68 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Doctor Claudius, A True Story is here in full — 339 sentences across 68 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea. No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better. And Miss Skeat, too, would she like to come? Such a pity poor Margaret had a headache. She had not even come to breakfast.
Chapter 8 of Doctor Claudius, A True Story is here in full — 339 sentences across 68 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/67 · 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.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading “Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea.”
eat an early morning meal
From this reading “She had not even come to breakfast.”
a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading “No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.”
something or someone that causes anxiety; a source of unhappiness
From this reading “Such a pity poor Margaret had a headache.”
a feeling of sympathy and sorrow for the misfortunes of others
From this reading “Such a pity poor Margaret had a headache.”
a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
From this reading “Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea.”
English philologist (1835-1912)
From this reading “And Miss Skeat, too, would she like to come?”
queen of Great Britain and Ireland and empress of India from 1837 to 1901; the last Hanoverian ruler of England (1819-1901)
From this reading “Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea.”
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 Such a pity poor Margaret had a headache.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
(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 No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
eat an early morning meal
From this reading She had not even come to breakfast.
a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading And Miss Skeat, too, would she like to come?
divisible by two
From this reading She had not even come to breakfast.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Such a pity poor Margaret had a headache.
something or someone that causes anxiety; a source of unhappiness
From this reading Such a pity poor Margaret had a headache.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
a polite name for any woman
From this reading Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Such a pity poor Margaret had a headache.
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading And Miss Skeat, too, would she like to come?
not any; not one
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea.
a feeling of sympathy and sorrow for the misfortunes of others
From this reading Such a pity poor Margaret had a headache.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading Such a pity poor Margaret had a headache.
a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
From this reading Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
English philologist (1835-1912)
From this reading And Miss Skeat, too, would she like to come?
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading Such a pity poor Margaret had a headache.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading And Miss Skeat, too, would she like to come?
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading And Miss Skeat, too, would she like to come?
queen of Great Britain and Ireland and empress of India from 1837 to 1901; the last Hanoverian ruler of England (1819-1901)
From this reading Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Lady Victoria was not afraid of the sea.
in the company of; together with
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading No indeed, and if her brother would go with her she would like nothing better.
Chapter 8 of Doctor Claudius, A True Story by F. Marion (Francis Marion) Crawford holds 339 sentences, grouped into 68 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 8 holds 339 sentences of Doctor Claudius, A True Story, unabridged, divided into 68 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Doctor Claudius, A True Story by F. Marion (Francis Marion) Crawford exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 339 sentences, grouped into 68 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 68 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 68 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 8 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 Doctor Claudius, A True Story by F. Marion (Francis Marion) Crawford on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5515 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #15223 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #15223, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 459 minutes of reading across 1103 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Doctor Claudius, A True Story section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 20 chapters of Doctor Claudius, A True Story 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 Doctor Claudius, A True Story, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
