Chapter 1 of English Verse is here in full — 324 sentences across 65 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of English Verse is here in full — 324 sentences across 65 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Þ, þ - upper and lower case thorn. Ð, ð - upper and lower case eth. Ȝ, ȝ - upper and lower case yogh. Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter. Minor corrections to punctuation and capitalisation have been made without note.
Chapter 1 of English Verse is here in full — 324 sentences across 65 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/64 · 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.
a subdivision of a written work; usually numbered and titled
From this reading “Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.”
the department of local government that is responsible for managing the treatment of convicted offenders
From this reading “Minor corrections to punctuation and capitalisation have been made without note.”
plural of “footnote” — a printed note placed below the text on a printed page
From this reading “Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.”
of lesser importance or stature or rank
From this reading “Minor corrections to punctuation and capitalisation have been made without note.”
past form of “number” — add up in number or quantity
From this reading “Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.”
something that makes repeated and regular interruptions or divisions
From this reading “Minor corrections to punctuation and capitalisation have been made without note.”
in a consecutive manner
From this reading “Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.”
something that causes irritation and annoyance
From this reading “Þ, þ - upper and lower case thorn.”
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 Þ, þ - upper and lower case thorn.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
writing in capital letters
From this reading Minor corrections to punctuation and capitalisation have been made without note.
an occurrence of something
From this reading Þ, þ - upper and lower case thorn.
a subdivision of a written work; usually numbered and titled
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
the department of local government that is responsible for managing the treatment of convicted offenders
From this reading Minor corrections to punctuation and capitalisation have been made without note.
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ð, ð - upper and lower case eth.
plural of “footnote” — a printed note placed below the text on a printed page
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
move something or somebody to a lower position
From this reading Þ, þ - upper and lower case thorn.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Minor corrections to punctuation and capitalisation have been made without note.
of lesser importance or stature or rank
From this reading Minor corrections to punctuation and capitalisation have been made without note.
being excited or provoked to the expression of an emotion
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
a brief written record
From this reading Minor corrections to punctuation and capitalisation have been made without note.
past form of “number” — add up in number or quantity
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
something that makes repeated and regular interruptions or divisions
From this reading Minor corrections to punctuation and capitalisation have been made without note.
in a consecutive manner
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
something that causes irritation and annoyance
From this reading Þ, þ - upper and lower case thorn.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Footnotes have been numbered sequentially and moved to the end of each chapter.
the topmost one of two
From this reading Þ, þ - upper and lower case thorn.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading Minor corrections to punctuation and capitalisation have been made without note.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ȝ, ȝ - upper and lower case yogh.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ð, ð - upper and lower case eth.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Þ, þ - upper and lower case thorn.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ȝ, ȝ - upper and lower case yogh.
Chapter 1 of English Verse by Raymond MacDonald Alden holds 324 sentences, grouped into 65 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 1 holds 324 sentences of English Verse, unabridged, divided into 65 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of English Verse by Raymond MacDonald Alden exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 324 sentences, grouped into 65 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 65 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 65 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 1 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 English Verse by Raymond MacDonald Alden on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5323 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #32262 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #32262, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 443 minutes of reading across 1065 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through English Verse section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 16 chapters of English Verse 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 English Verse, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
