Chapter 6 of Flemish Legends 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 VI
Chapter 6 of Flemish Legends is here in full — 446 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
XIV. Of the great fears and pains of Smetse's wife. Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph. "Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance? Was it not a merry one?
Chapter 6 of Flemish Legends 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.
an artistic form of nonverbal communication
From this reading “"Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?”
an old form of “did”, used with “thou”
From this reading “"Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?”
plural of “fear” — an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight)
From this reading “Of the great fears and pains of Smetse's wife.”
leader of the Nez Perce in their retreat from United States troops (1840-1904)
From this reading “Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.”
a room equipped for preparing meals
From this reading “Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.”
plural of “knee” — hinge joint in the human leg connecting the tibia and fibula with the femur and protected in front by the patella
From this reading “Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.”
full of or showing high-spirited merriment
From this reading “Was it not a merry one?”
an effortful attempt to attain a goal
From this reading “Of the great fears and pains of Smetse's wife.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
In this reading “Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.”
keep in mind for attention or consideration
In this reading “"Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?”
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 Was it not a merry one?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Of the great fears and pains of Smetse's wife.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
an artistic form of nonverbal communication
From this reading "Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?
an old form of “did”, used with “thou”
From this reading "Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?
plural of “fear” — an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight)
From this reading Of the great fears and pains of Smetse's wife.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
set up or found
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
the act of departing
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading Of the great fears and pains of Smetse's wife.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Was it not a merry one?
leader of the Nez Perce in their retreat from United States troops (1840-1904)
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
a room equipped for preparing meals
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
plural of “knee” — hinge joint in the human leg connecting the tibia and fibula with the femur and protected in front by the patella
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
full of or showing high-spirited merriment
From this reading Was it not a merry one?
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading "Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Was it not a merry one?
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Of the great fears and pains of Smetse's wife.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Was it not a merry one?
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading "Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?
an effortful attempt to attain a goal
From this reading Of the great fears and pains of Smetse's wife.
a visual representation (of an object or scene or person or abstraction) produced on a surface
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Of the great fears and pains of Smetse's wife.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Of the great fears and pains of Smetse's wife.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Smetse, going to look for his wife, found her in the kitchen on her knees before the picture of St. Joseph.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Was it not a merry one?
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading "Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "Well, mother," said he, "what didst think of our dance?
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading Of the great fears and pains of Smetse's wife.
the cardinal number that is the sum of thirteen and one
From this reading XIV.
Chapter 6 of Flemish Legends by Charles de Coster holds 446 sentences, grouped into 90 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 6 holds 446 sentences of Flemish Legends, unabridged, divided into 90 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of Flemish Legends by Charles de Coster exactly as it stands in the 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 6 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 Flemish Legends by Charles de Coster on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2741 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #37668 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #37668, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 228 minutes of reading across 549 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Flemish Legends section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of Flemish Legends 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 Flemish Legends, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
