Chapter 1 of Familiar Animals is here in full — 62 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Familiar Animals is here in full — 62 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). THE COW. “My name is Molly. This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it. “Four years ago I was a little calf.
Chapter 1 of Familiar Animals is here in full — 62 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/12 · 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.
young of domestic cattle
From this reading ““Four years ago I was a little calf.”
plural of “call” — a telephone connection
From this reading “This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it.”
female of domestic cattle: "“moo-cow” is a child's term"
From this reading “THE COW.”
closed in or surrounded or included within
From this reading “Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).”
plural of “italic” — a style of handwriting with the letters slanting to the right
From this reading “Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).”
popular aquarium fish
From this reading ““My name is Molly.”
the words of something written
From this reading “Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).”
plural of “underscore” — a line drawn underneath (especially under written matter)
From this reading “Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).”
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.
In this reading ““Four years ago I was a little calf.”
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 “Four years ago I was a little calf.
in the past
From this reading “Four years ago I was a little calf.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
young of domestic cattle
From this reading “Four years ago I was a little calf.
plural of “call” — a telephone connection
From this reading This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it.
female of domestic cattle: "“moo-cow” is a child's term"
From this reading THE COW.
closed in or surrounded or included within
From this reading Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it.
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
From this reading “Four years ago I was a little calf.
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Four years ago I was a little calf.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it.
plural of “italic” — a style of handwriting with the letters slanting to the right
From this reading Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “Four years ago I was a little calf.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it.
an adulterous woman; a woman who has an ongoing extramarital sexual relationship with a man
From this reading This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it.
popular aquarium fish
From this reading “My name is Molly.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “My name is Molly.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading “My name is Molly.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it.
the words of something written
From this reading Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE COW.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This is the name my mistress gave me, and now every one calls me by it.
plural of “underscore” — a line drawn underneath (especially under written matter)
From this reading Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Four years ago I was a little calf.
a late time of life
From this reading “Four years ago I was a little calf.
Chapter 1 of Familiar Animals by Anonymous holds 62 sentences, grouped into 13 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 62 sentences of Familiar Animals, unabridged, divided into 13 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Familiar Animals by Anonymous exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 62 sentences, grouped into 13 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 13 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 13 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 Familiar Animals by Anonymous on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 62 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #63692 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #63692, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 13 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Familiar Animals section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of Familiar Animals 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 Familiar Animals, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
