Chapter 15 of Five Tales is here in full — 204 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of Five Tales is here in full — 204 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!” “Breathe? I wasn't!” “You were; just like Carmen when she's dreaming.” He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
Chapter 15 of Five Tales is here in full — 204 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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.
exceptionally bad or displeasing
From this reading “And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!””
draw air into, and expel out of, the lungs
From this reading “And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!””
imaginative thoughts indulged in while awake
From this reading ““You were; just like Carmen when she's dreaming.””
characterized by or producing sound of great volume or intensity
From this reading “And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!””
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading “He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?”
happening unexpectedly
From this reading “And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!””
in the direction of
From this reading “He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?”
past form of “walk” — use one's feet to advance; advance by steps
From this reading “He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!”
exceptionally bad or displeasing
From this reading And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!”
earlier than; in front of
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
draw air into, and expel out of, the lungs
From this reading And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You were; just like Carmen when she's dreaming.”
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!”
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
imaginative thoughts indulged in while awake
From this reading “You were; just like Carmen when she's dreaming.”
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I wasn't!”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!”
and nothing more
From this reading “You were; just like Carmen when she's dreaming.”
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “You were; just like Carmen when she's dreaming.”
characterized by or producing sound of great volume or intensity
From this reading And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!”
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!”
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You were; just like Carmen when she's dreaming.”
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!”
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
happening unexpectedly
From this reading And suddenly she said: “Oh! don't breathe so loud; it's awful!”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
in the direction of
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
past form of “walk” — use one's feet to advance; advance by steps
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I wasn't!”
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “You were; just like Carmen when she's dreaming.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading He had walked three steps towards the door, before he thought: 'What does it matter?
at the time that
From this reading “You were; just like Carmen when she's dreaming.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You were; just like Carmen when she's dreaming.”
Chapter 15 of Five Tales by John Galsworthy holds 204 sentences, grouped into 41 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 15 holds 204 sentences of Five Tales, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of Five Tales by John Galsworthy exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 204 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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 15 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 Five Tales by John Galsworthy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6914 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2684 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2684, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 576 minutes of reading across 1383 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Five Tales section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 32 chapters of Five Tales 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 Five Tales, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
