Chapter 27 of Father Goriot is here in full — 155 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVII
Chapter 27 of Father Goriot is here in full — 155 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair. “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything. Family affection is the surest, you see.” The Countess inhaled the salts and revived. “This will kill me!” said their father.
Chapter 27 of Father Goriot is here in full — 155 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/31 · 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.
a positive feeling of liking
From this reading “Family affection is the surest, you see.””
female equivalent of a count or earl
From this reading “The Countess inhaled the salts and revived.”
an illustration that is drawn by hand and published in a book, magazine, or newspaper
From this reading ““Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.”
past form of “inhale” — draw deep into the lungs in by breathing
From this reading “The Countess inhaled the salts and revived.”
restored to consciousness or life or vigor
From this reading “The Countess inhaled the salts and revived.”
plural of “salt” — a compound formed by replacing hydrogen in an acid by a metal (or a radical that acts like a metal)
From this reading “The Countess inhaled the salts and revived.”
of a quantity that can fulfill a need or requirement but without being abundant
From this reading ““We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.”
superlative of “sure” — having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading “Family affection is the surest, you see.””
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 “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
a positive feeling of liking
From this reading Family affection is the surest, you see.”
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The Countess inhaled the salts and revived.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
female equivalent of a count or earl
From this reading The Countess inhaled the salts and revived.
a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies
From this reading “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
an illustration that is drawn by hand and published in a book, magazine, or newspaper
From this reading “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
all things; all of a situation
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
a social unit living together
From this reading Family affection is the surest, you see.”
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading “This will kill me!” said their father.
stop blaming or grant forgiveness
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
past form of “inhale” — draw deep into the lungs in by breathing
From this reading The Countess inhaled the salts and revived.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly
From this reading “This will kill me!” said their father.
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “This will kill me!” said their father.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
and nothing more
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
restored to consciousness or life or vigor
From this reading The Countess inhaled the salts and revived.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
plural of “salt” — a compound formed by replacing hydrogen in an acid by a metal (or a radical that acts like a metal)
From this reading The Countess inhaled the salts and revived.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Family affection is the surest, you see.”
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
of a quantity that can fulfill a need or requirement but without being abundant
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
superlative of “sure” — having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading Family affection is the surest, you see.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading “This will kill me!” said their father.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “This will kill me!” said their father.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Poor Nasie!” said Mme. de Nucingen, drawing her sister to a chair.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
belonging to which person
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading “This will kill me!” said their father.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “We are the only two people in the world whose love is always sufficient to forgive you everything.
Chapter 27 of Father Goriot by Honoré de Balzac holds 155 sentences, grouped into 31 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 27 holds 155 sentences of Father Goriot, unabridged, divided into 31 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 27 of Father Goriot by Honoré de Balzac exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 155 sentences, grouped into 31 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 31 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 31 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 27 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 Father Goriot by Honoré de Balzac on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5569 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1237 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1237, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 464 minutes of reading across 1114 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Father Goriot section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 34 chapters of Father Goriot 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 Father Goriot, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
