Chapter 4 of Essays is here in full — 142 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Essays is here in full — 142 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part. Few languages offer the choice. The fact that a choice is made implies the results and fruits of a decision. The French author is without these. They are of all the heritages of the English writer the most important.
Chapter 4 of Essays is here in full — 142 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/28 · 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.
third-person singular of “choose” — pick out, select, or choose from a number of alternatives
From this reading “For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.”
plural of “fruit” — the ripened reproductive body of a seed plant
From this reading “The fact that a choice is made implies the results and fruits of a decision.”
plural of “heritage” — practices that are handed down from the past by tradition
From this reading “They are of all the heritages of the English writer the most important.”
third-person singular of “imply” — express or state indirectly
From this reading “The fact that a choice is made implies the results and fruits of a decision.”
plural of “language” — a systematic means of communicating by the use of sounds or conventional symbols
From this reading “Few languages offer the choice.”
plural of “result” — a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon
From this reading “The fact that a choice is made implies the results and fruits of a decision.”
in a statistically significant way
From this reading “For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.”
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading “They are of all the heritages of the English writer the most important.”
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 For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
(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 They are of all the heritages of the English writer the most important.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading They are of all the heritages of the English writer the most important.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading The French author is without these.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
the person or thing chosen or selected
From this reading Few languages offer the choice.
third-person singular of “choose” — pick out, select, or choose from a number of alternatives
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
the act of making up your mind about something
From this reading The fact that a choice is made implies the results and fruits of a decision.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
an Indo-European language belonging to the West Germanic branch; the official language of Britain and the United States and most of the commonwealth countries
From this reading They are of all the heritages of the English writer the most important.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred
From this reading The fact that a choice is made implies the results and fruits of a decision.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading Few languages offer the choice.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
the Romance language spoken in France and in countries colonized by France
From this reading The French author is without these.
plural of “fruit” — the ripened reproductive body of a seed plant
From this reading The fact that a choice is made implies the results and fruits of a decision.
plural of “heritage” — practices that are handed down from the past by tradition
From this reading They are of all the heritages of the English writer the most important.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
third-person singular of “imply” — express or state indirectly
From this reading The fact that a choice is made implies the results and fruits of a decision.
of great significance or value
From this reading They are of all the heritages of the English writer the most important.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
a systematic means of communicating by the use of sounds or conventional symbols
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
plural of “language” — a systematic means of communicating by the use of sounds or conventional symbols
From this reading Few languages offer the choice.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading The fact that a choice is made implies the results and fruits of a decision.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
used to form the superlative
From this reading They are of all the heritages of the English writer the most important.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
make available or accessible, provide or furnish
From this reading Few languages offer the choice.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
plural of “result” — a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon
From this reading The fact that a choice is made implies the results and fruits of a decision.
an educational institution
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
in a statistically significant way
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Few languages offer the choice.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading The French author is without these.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They are of all the heritages of the English writer the most important.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
which person or people
From this reading For if every language be a school, more significantly and more educatively is a part of a language a school to him who chooses that part.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading The French author is without these.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading They are of all the heritages of the English writer the most important.
Chapter 4 of Essays by Alice Meynell holds 142 sentences, grouped into 29 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 142 sentences of Essays, unabridged, divided into 29 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Essays by Alice Meynell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 142 sentences, grouped into 29 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 29 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 29 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.
Common questions about reading Essays by Alice Meynell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2777 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1434 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1434, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 231 minutes of reading across 556 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Essays section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 18 chapters of Essays 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 Essays, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
