Chapter 13 of Dreamers of the Ghetto is here in full — 408 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIII
Chapter 13 of Dreamers of the Ghetto is here in full — 408 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Then you had nothing from your parents?" "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers. He was a scribe, you know, and wrote the Scrolls of the Law. But he wanted me to be a pedlar." "A pedlar!" cried Maimon, open-eyed.
Chapter 13 of Dreamers of the Ghetto is here in full — 408 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
an act of copying
From this reading “"Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.”
something written by hand
From this reading “"Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.”
plural of “job” — the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money
From this reading “"Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.”
plural of “parent” — a father or mother; one who begets or one who gives birth to or nurtures and raises a child; a relative who plays the role of guardian
From this reading “"Then you had nothing from your parents?"”
plural of “printer” — someone whose occupation is printing
From this reading “"Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.”
score a line on with a pointed instrument, as in metalworking
From this reading “He was a scribe, you know, and wrote the Scrolls of the Law.”
plural of “scroll” — a round shape formed by a series of concentric circles (as formed by leaves or flower petals)
From this reading “He was a scribe, you know, and wrote the Scrolls of the Law.”
inflected form of “write” — produce a literary work
From this reading “He was a scribe, you know, and wrote the Scrolls of the Law.”
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 before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading But he wanted me to be a pedlar."
delighting the senses or exciting intellectual or emotional admiration
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But he wanted me to be a pedlar."
an act of copying
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading "A pedlar!" cried Maimon, open-eyed.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading "Then you had nothing from your parents?"
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading "Then you had nothing from your parents?"
something written by hand
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was a scribe, you know, and wrote the Scrolls of the Law.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
plural of “job” — the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
the emotion of great happiness
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading He was a scribe, you know, and wrote the Scrolls of the Law.
the collection of rules imposed by authority
From this reading He was a scribe, you know, and wrote the Scrolls of the Law.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "A pedlar!" cried Maimon, open-eyed.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading "Then you had nothing from your parents?"
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
and nothing more
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
carefully observant or attentive; on the lookout for possible danger
From this reading "A pedlar!" cried Maimon, open-eyed.
plural of “parent” — a father or mother; one who begets or one who gives birth to or nurtures and raises a child; a relative who plays the role of guardian
From this reading "Then you had nothing from your parents?"
someone who travels about selling his wares (as on the streets or at carnivals)
From this reading But he wanted me to be a pedlar."
plural of “printer” — someone whose occupation is printing
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
score a line on with a pointed instrument, as in metalworking
From this reading He was a scribe, you know, and wrote the Scrolls of the Law.
plural of “scroll” — a round shape formed by a series of concentric circles (as formed by leaves or flower petals)
From this reading He was a scribe, you know, and wrote the Scrolls of the Law.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading "Then you had nothing from your parents?"
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading But he wanted me to be a pedlar."
desired or wished for or sought
From this reading But he wanted me to be a pedlar."
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He was a scribe, you know, and wrote the Scrolls of the Law.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading "Only a beautiful handwriting from my father which got me copying jobs for a few groschens and is now the joy of the printers.
inflected form of “write” — produce a literary work
From this reading He was a scribe, you know, and wrote the Scrolls of the Law.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Then you had nothing from your parents?"
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Then you had nothing from your parents?"
Chapter 13 of Dreamers of the Ghetto by Israel Zangwill holds 408 sentences, grouped into 82 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 13 holds 408 sentences of Dreamers of the Ghetto, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 13 of Dreamers of the Ghetto by Israel Zangwill exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 408 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 13 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 Dreamers of the Ghetto by Israel Zangwill on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8887 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #29875 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #29875, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1778 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Dreamers of the Ghetto section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 21 chapters of Dreamers of the Ghetto 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 Dreamers of the Ghetto, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
