Chapter 1 of Far from the Madding Crowd is here in full — 89 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Far from the Madding Crowd is here in full — 89 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
List of Illustrations HANDS WERE LOOSENING HIS NECKERCHIEF. “DO YOU HAPPEN TO WANT A SHEPPERD MA’AM?” “GET THE FRONT DOOR KEY.” LIDDY FETCHED IT. “I FEEL—ALMOST TOO MUCH—TO THINK,” HE SAID.
Chapter 1 of Far from the Madding Crowd is here in full — 89 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/17 · 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.
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “DO YOU HAPPEN TO WANT A SHEPPERD MA’AM?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I FEEL—ALMOST TOO MUCH—TO THINK,” HE SAID.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “DO YOU HAPPEN TO WANT A SHEPPERD MA’AM?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “GET THE FRONT DOOR KEY.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I FEEL—ALMOST TOO MUCH—TO THINK,” HE SAID.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LIDDY FETCHED IT.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “GET THE FRONT DOOR KEY.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “GET THE FRONT DOOR KEY.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading List of Illustrations HANDS WERE LOOSENING HIS NECKERCHIEF.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “DO YOU HAPPEN TO WANT A SHEPPERD MA’AM?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I FEEL—ALMOST TOO MUCH—TO THINK,” HE SAID.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading List of Illustrations HANDS WERE LOOSENING HIS NECKERCHIEF.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I FEEL—ALMOST TOO MUCH—TO THINK,” HE SAID.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading List of Illustrations HANDS WERE LOOSENING HIS NECKERCHIEF.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LIDDY FETCHED IT.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “GET THE FRONT DOOR KEY.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LIDDY FETCHED IT.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading List of Illustrations HANDS WERE LOOSENING HIS NECKERCHIEF.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading List of Illustrations HANDS WERE LOOSENING HIS NECKERCHIEF.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “DO YOU HAPPEN TO WANT A SHEPPERD MA’AM?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I FEEL—ALMOST TOO MUCH—TO THINK,” HE SAID.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading List of Illustrations HANDS WERE LOOSENING HIS NECKERCHIEF.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading List of Illustrations HANDS WERE LOOSENING HIS NECKERCHIEF.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I FEEL—ALMOST TOO MUCH—TO THINK,” HE SAID.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “DO YOU HAPPEN TO WANT A SHEPPERD MA’AM?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “GET THE FRONT DOOR KEY.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I FEEL—ALMOST TOO MUCH—TO THINK,” HE SAID.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “DO YOU HAPPEN TO WANT A SHEPPERD MA’AM?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I FEEL—ALMOST TOO MUCH—TO THINK,” HE SAID.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “DO YOU HAPPEN TO WANT A SHEPPERD MA’AM?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading List of Illustrations HANDS WERE LOOSENING HIS NECKERCHIEF.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “DO YOU HAPPEN TO WANT A SHEPPERD MA’AM?”
Chapter 1 of Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy holds 89 sentences, grouped into 18 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 1 holds 89 sentences of Far from the Madding Crowd, unabridged, divided into 18 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 89 sentences, grouped into 18 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 18 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 18 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 Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7856 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #27 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #27, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1572 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Far from the Madding Crowd section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of Far from the Madding Crowd 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 Far from the Madding Crowd, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
