Chapter 3 of Fanny's First Play is here in full — 446 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Fanny's First Play is here in full — 446 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MRS GILBEY. Did a what? DORA. A bunk. Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
Chapter 3 of Fanny's First Play is here in full — 446 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/89 · 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.
maintain with or as if with a bet
From this reading “Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.”
a long trough for feeding cattle
From this reading “A bunk.”
the body of faculty and students of a college
From this reading “Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.”
dearly loved
From this reading “Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.”
more quickly
From this reading “Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.”
a sacred place of pilgrimage
From this reading “Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.”
precisely, exactly
From this reading “Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.”
past form of “sprint” — run very fast, usually for a short distance
From this reading “Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.”
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 Did a what?
(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 Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
maintain with or as if with a bet
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
a long trough for feeding cattle
From this reading A bunk.
the body of faculty and students of a college
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
dearly loved
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Did a what?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading DORA.
at any time
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
more quickly
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading MRS GILBEY.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
a sacred place of pilgrimage
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading MRS GILBEY.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
precisely, exactly
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
past form of “sprint” — run very fast, usually for a short distance
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading Holy Joe did one too all right: he sprinted faster than he ever did in college, I bet, the old dear.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Did a what?
Chapter 3 of Fanny's First Play by Bernard Shaw holds 446 sentences, grouped into 90 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 446 sentences of Fanny's First Play, unabridged, divided into 90 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Fanny's First Play by Bernard Shaw exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 446 sentences, grouped into 90 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 90 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 90 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 Fanny's First Play by Bernard Shaw on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1786 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #5698 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #5698, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 148 minutes of reading across 358 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Fanny's First Play section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of Fanny's First Play 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 Fanny's First Play, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
