Chapter 31 of Dora Thorne is here in full — 150 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXI
Chapter 31 of Dora Thorne is here in full — 150 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said: "Tell me all, darling; perhaps I can help you." "I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice. "I am sure I did not mean it. I was but a child.
Chapter 31 of Dora Thorne is here in full — 150 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/30 · 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 woman who guided Dante through Paradise in the Divine Comedy
From this reading “"I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice.”
a relatively permanent inclination to react in a particular way
From this reading “There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:”
a special loved one
From this reading “"Tell me all, darling; perhaps I can help you."”
any liliaceous plant of the genus Lilium having showy pendulous flowers
From this reading “"I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice.”
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading “There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:”
past form of “promise” — make a promise or commitment
From this reading “"I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice.”
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading “There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:”
marked by continuous or uninterrupted extension in space or time or sequence
From this reading “There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:”
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 I was but a child.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading "Tell me all, darling; perhaps I can help you."
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading "I am sure I did not mean it.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice.
the woman who guided Dante through Paradise in the Divine Comedy
From this reading "I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice.
a relatively permanent inclination to react in a particular way
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading I was but a child.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "Tell me all, darling; perhaps I can help you."
a young person of either sex
From this reading I was but a child.
without stop or interruption
From this reading "I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice.
a special loved one
From this reading "Tell me all, darling; perhaps I can help you."
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading "I am sure I did not mean it.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading "Tell me all, darling; perhaps I can help you."
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Tell me all, darling; perhaps I can help you."
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "I am sure I did not mean it.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
any liliaceous plant of the genus Lilium having showy pendulous flowers
From this reading "I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Tell me all, darling; perhaps I can help you."
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading "I am sure I did not mean it.
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "I am sure I did not mean it.
above and across; more than
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
by chance
From this reading "Tell me all, darling; perhaps I can help you."
past form of “promise” — make a promise or commitment
From this reading "I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading "I am sure I did not mean it.
express in words
From this reading "Tell me all, darling; perhaps I can help you."
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice.
marked by continuous or uninterrupted extension in space or time or sequence
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There was unbroken silence for some minutes; then Lillian bent over her sister, and said:
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading "I promised to be his wife, Lily," continued Beatrice.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Tell me all, darling; perhaps I can help you."
Chapter 31 of Dora Thorne by Charlotte M. Brame holds 150 sentences, grouped into 30 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 31 holds 150 sentences of Dora Thorne, unabridged, divided into 30 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 31 of Dora Thorne by Charlotte M. Brame exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 150 sentences, grouped into 30 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 30 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 30 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 Dora Thorne by Charlotte M. Brame on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6427 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2374 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2374, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 535 minutes of reading across 1286 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Dora Thorne section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Dora Thorne 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 Dora Thorne, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
