Chapter 10 of Father Payne is here in full — 435 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter X
Chapter 10 of Father Payne is here in full — 435 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye. "No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne. "They were all alive, those people. They were just gnats, now I come to think of it! They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
Chapter 10 of Father Payne is here in full — 435 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/87 · 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.
possessing life
From this reading “"They were all alive, those people.”
an artistic form of nonverbal communication
From this reading “"No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.”
showing the wearing effects of overwork or care or suffering
From this reading “They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.”
plural of “gnat” — any of various small biting flies: midges; biting midges; black flies; sand flies
From this reading “"No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.”
of a dreadful kind
From this reading “"It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye.”
stupefied or excited by a chemical substance (especially alcohol)
From this reading “They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.”
aroused to impatience or anger
From this reading “They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.”
lacking refinement or cultivation or taste
From this reading “"It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye.”
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, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.
possessing life
From this reading "They were all alive, those people.
(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 "It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
The red fluid that circulates in the heart and blood vessels.
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading They were just gnats, now I come to think of it!
an artistic form of nonverbal communication
From this reading "No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
showing the wearing effects of overwork or care or suffering
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
divisible by two
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading "No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.
plural of “gnat” — any of various small biting flies: midges; biting midges; black flies; sand flies
From this reading "No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
of a dreadful kind
From this reading "It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading They were just gnats, now I come to think of it!
stupefied or excited by a chemical substance (especially alcohol)
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye.
and nothing more
From this reading They were just gnats, now I come to think of it!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye.
the force of workers available
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading "No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.
not any; not one
From this reading "No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading They were just gnats, now I come to think of it!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading "They were all alive, those people.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye.
third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading "It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye.
aroused to impatience or anger
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading "No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading They had stung all the great men of the day--even drawn a little blood--and they were intoxicated by it.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "They were all alive, those people.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading They were just gnats, now I come to think of it!
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading "They were all alive, those people.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye.
lacking refinement or cultivation or taste
From this reading "It all seems to me horribly vulgar," said Kaye.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "No, it was no more vulgar than a dance of gnats," said Father Payne.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "They were all alive, those people.
Chapter 10 of Father Payne by Arthur Christopher Benson holds 435 sentences, grouped into 87 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 10 holds 435 sentences of Father Payne, unabridged, divided into 87 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 10 of Father Payne by Arthur Christopher Benson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 435 sentences, grouped into 87 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 87 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 87 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 10 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 Payne by Arthur Christopher Benson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5896 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #12264 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #12264, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 491 minutes of reading across 1180 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Father Payne section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 14 chapters of Father Payne 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 Payne, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
