Chapter 4 of Dryden's Palamon and Arcite is here in full — 134 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Dryden's Palamon and Arcite is here in full — 134 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
7 2. Theseus. A legendary hero of Greece, son of Aegeus. He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted. Succeeded Aegeus as king of Athens.
Chapter 4 of Dryden's Palamon and Arcite is here in full — 134 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/26 · 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.
beautiful daughter of Minos and Pasiphae; she fell in love with Theseus and gave him the thread with which he found his way out of the Minotaur's labyrinth
From this reading “He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.”
the capital and largest city of Greece; named after Athena (its patron goddess)
From this reading “He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.”
forsaken by owner or inhabitants
From this reading “He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.”
past form of “free” — grant freedom to; free from confinement
From this reading “He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.”
a republic in southeastern Europe on the southern part of the Balkan peninsula; known for grapes and olives and olive oil
From this reading “A legendary hero of Greece, son of Aegeus.”
so celebrated as to having taken on the nature of a legend
From this reading “A legendary hero of Greece, son of Aegeus.”
(Greek mythology) a hero and king of Athens who was noted for his many great deeds: killed Procrustes and the Minotaur and defeated the Amazons and united Attica
From this reading “Theseus.”
something given or done as an expression of esteem
From this reading “He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 7 2.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 7 2.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading A legendary hero of Greece, son of Aegeus.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A legendary hero of Greece, son of Aegeus.
beautiful daughter of Minos and Pasiphae; she fell in love with Theseus and gave him the thread with which he found his way out of the Minotaur's labyrinth
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Succeeded Aegeus as king of Athens.
the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
the capital and largest city of Greece; named after Athena (its patron goddess)
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
a native or inhabitant of Crete
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
forsaken by owner or inhabitants
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
past form of “free” — grant freedom to; free from confinement
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
a republic in southeastern Europe on the southern part of the Balkan peninsula; known for grapes and olives and olive oil
From this reading A legendary hero of Greece, son of Aegeus.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
a man distinguished by exceptional courage and nobility and strength
From this reading A legendary hero of Greece, son of Aegeus.
characteristic of humanity
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading Succeeded Aegeus as king of Athens.
so celebrated as to having taken on the nature of a legend
From this reading A legendary hero of Greece, son of Aegeus.
(Greek mythology) a mythical monster with the head of a bull and the body of a man; slain by Theseus
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading A legendary hero of Greece, son of Aegeus.
a male human offspring
From this reading A legendary hero of Greece, son of Aegeus.
past form of “succeed” — attain success or reach a desired goal
From this reading Succeeded Aegeus as king of Athens.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
(Greek mythology) a hero and king of Athens who was noted for his many great deeds: killed Procrustes and the Minotaur and defeated the Amazons and united Attica
From this reading Theseus.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
something given or done as an expression of esteem
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
the form of “who” used as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
in the company of; together with
From this reading He freed Athens from human tribute to the Cretan Minotaur, with the assistance of Ariadne, whom he deserted.
Chapter 4 of Dryden's Palamon and Arcite by John Dryden holds 134 sentences, grouped into 27 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 4 holds 134 sentences of Dryden's Palamon and Arcite, unabridged, divided into 27 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Dryden's Palamon and Arcite by John Dryden exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 134 sentences, grouped into 27 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 27 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 27 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 4 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.
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About 99 minutes of reading across 239 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in Dryden's Palamon and Arcite, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
