Chapter 15 of Four girls of forty years ago is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of Four girls of forty years ago is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?” “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow. “I’ve tried and tried, but my eyes won’t stay shut. I thought you might be asleep, though, so I kept as quiet as I could.” Dulcie sighed, and slipped an arm round her sister.
Chapter 15 of Four girls of forty years ago is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
any of numerous composite plants having flower heads with well-developed ray flowers usually arranged in a single whorl
From this reading “DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?””
having the pinkish flush of health
From this reading ““No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.”
steering mechanism for a vessel; a mechanical device by which a vessel is steered
From this reading “DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?””
-ing form of “lift” — raise from a lower to a higher position
From this reading ““No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.”
a cushion to support the head of a sleeping person
From this reading ““No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.”
past form of “sigh” — heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
From this reading “Dulcie sighed, and slipped an arm round her sister.”
inflected form of “slip” — move stealthily
From this reading “Dulcie sighed, and slipped an arm round her sister.”
held in check with difficulty
From this reading ““No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.”
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 “Dulcie sighed, and slipped an arm round her sister.”
In this reading ““No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.”
In this reading “DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?””
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,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Dulcie sighed, and slipped an arm round her sister.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “I’ve tried and tried, but my eyes won’t stay shut.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?”
a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading Dulcie sighed, and slipped an arm round her sister.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading I thought you might be asleep, though, so I kept as quiet as I could.”
in a state of sleep
From this reading DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?”
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading I thought you might be asleep, though, so I kept as quiet as I could.”
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading “I’ve tried and tried, but my eyes won’t stay shut.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading I thought you might be asleep, though, so I kept as quiet as I could.”
any of numerous composite plants having flower heads with well-developed ray flowers usually arranged in a single whorl
From this reading DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?”
opinion or judgment
From this reading “I’ve tried and tried, but my eyes won’t stay shut.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
having the pinkish flush of health
From this reading “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
steering mechanism for a vessel; a mechanical device by which a vessel is steered
From this reading DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Dulcie sighed, and slipped an arm round her sister.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I thought you might be asleep, though, so I kept as quiet as I could.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I’ve tried and tried, but my eyes won’t stay shut.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading I thought you might be asleep, though, so I kept as quiet as I could.”
-ing form of “lift” — raise from a lower to a higher position
From this reading “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading I thought you might be asleep, though, so I kept as quiet as I could.”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “I’ve tried and tried, but my eyes won’t stay shut.
not any; not one
From this reading “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
a cushion to support the head of a sleeping person
From this reading “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
characterized by an absence or near absence of agitation or activity
From this reading I thought you might be asleep, though, so I kept as quiet as I could.”
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading Dulcie sighed, and slipped an arm round her sister.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
move so that an opening or passage is obstructed; make shut
From this reading “I’ve tried and tried, but my eyes won’t stay shut.
past form of “sigh” — heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
From this reading Dulcie sighed, and slipped an arm round her sister.
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading Dulcie sighed, and slipped an arm round her sister.
inflected form of “slip” — move stealthily
From this reading Dulcie sighed, and slipped an arm round her sister.
held in check with difficulty
From this reading “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading I thought you might be asleep, though, so I kept as quiet as I could.”
stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading “I’ve tried and tried, but my eyes won’t stay shut.
plural of “take” — the income or profit arising from such transactions as the sale of land or other property
From this reading DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?”
in spite of the fact that
From this reading I thought you might be asleep, though, so I kept as quiet as I could.”
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading I thought you might be asleep, though, so I kept as quiet as I could.”
tested and proved useful or correct
From this reading “I’ve tried and tried, but my eyes won’t stay shut.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading “No,” said Daisy, in a smothered voice, lifting a flushed, tear-wet face from the pillow.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I’ve tried and tried, but my eyes won’t stay shut.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading DULCIE TAKES THE HELM “Daisy, are you asleep?”
Chapter 15 of Four girls of forty years ago by Nina Rhoades holds 196 sentences, grouped into 40 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 15 holds 196 sentences of Four girls of forty years ago, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of Four girls of forty years ago by Nina Rhoades exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 196 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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.
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Yes. All 4017 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #73301 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #73301, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 334 minutes of reading across 804 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in Four girls of forty years ago, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
