Chapter 3 of Esther Waters is here in full — 392 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Esther Waters is here in full — 392 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments. "I thought not.... Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight." For something to say, and hoping to please, Esther asked him where the race-course was. "There, over yonder.
Chapter 3 of Esther Waters is here in full — 392 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/78 · 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.
(Old Testament) a beautiful Jewess chosen by the king of Persia to be his queen; she stopped a plot to massacre all the Jews in Persia (an event celebrated by Jews as the feast of Purim)
From this reading “"No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.”
-ing form of “hope” — expect and wish
From this reading “For something to say, and hoping to please, Esther asked him where the race-course was.”
a small island
From this reading “Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."”
plural of “moment” — a particular point in time
From this reading “"No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.”
water falling in drops from vapor condensed in the atmosphere
From this reading “Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."”
an intense or violent exertion
From this reading “"No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.”
a human being; “wight” is an archaic term
From this reading “Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."”
distant but within sight (“yon” is dialectal)
From this reading “"There, over yonder.”
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 "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
later than; following
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading For something to say, and hoping to please, Esther asked him where the race-course was.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading For something to say, and hoping to please, Esther asked him where the race-course was.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
(Old Testament) a beautiful Jewess chosen by the king of Persia to be his queen; she stopped a plot to massacre all the Jews in Persia (an event celebrated by Jews as the feast of Purim)
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
opinion or judgment
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
the act of departing
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading For something to say, and hoping to please, Esther asked him where the race-course was.
-ing form of “hope” — expect and wish
From this reading For something to say, and hoping to please, Esther asked him where the race-course was.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
a small island
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
plural of “moment” — a particular point in time
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
not any; not one
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "I thought not....
not one thing; not anything
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
above and across; more than
From this reading "There, over yonder.
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading For something to say, and hoping to please, Esther asked him where the race-course was.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For something to say, and hoping to please, Esther asked him where the race-course was.
water falling in drops from vapor condensed in the atmosphere
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
express in words
From this reading For something to say, and hoping to please, Esther asked him where the race-course was.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading For something to say, and hoping to please, Esther asked him where the race-course was.
an intense or violent exertion
From this reading "No, I can see nothing," said Esther, after straining her eyes for a few moments.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
in or at that place or location
From this reading "There, over yonder.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading "I thought not....
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
in or at the place that
From this reading For something to say, and hoping to please, Esther asked him where the race-course was.
a human being; “wight” is an archaic term
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
distant but within sight (“yon” is dialectal)
From this reading "There, over yonder.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Well, if it was going to rain you would see the Isle of Wight."
Chapter 3 of Esther Waters by George Moore holds 392 sentences, grouped into 79 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 3 holds 392 sentences of Esther Waters, unabridged, divided into 79 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Esther Waters by George Moore exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 392 sentences, grouped into 79 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 79 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 79 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 3 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 Esther Waters by George Moore on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8819 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #8157 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #8157, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1764 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Esther Waters section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 22 chapters of Esther Waters 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 Esther Waters, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
