Chapter 15 of Fruitfulness is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of Fruitfulness is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"No, no, don't leave him there. There is a bed in the next room. We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed." It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory. But what could she say?
Chapter 15 of Fruitfulness is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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 lake in southeastern Germany on the northern side of the Swiss Alps; forms part of the Rhine River
From this reading “It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.”
in a gradual manner
From this reading “We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."”
characteristic of a mother
From this reading “It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.”
a large thick pad filled with resilient material and often incorporating coiled springs, used as a bed or part of a bed
From this reading “We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."”
The faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information and knowledge.
From this reading “It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.”
righteousness by virtue of being pious
From this reading “It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.”
possessive form of “son” — a male human offspring
From this reading “It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.”
not made or become different
From this reading “It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.”
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 There is a bed in the next room.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading There is a bed in the next room.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But what could she say?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
a lake in southeastern Germany on the northern side of the Swiss Alps; forms part of the Rhine River
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading But what could she say?
past form of “die” — pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "No, no, don't leave him there.
in a gradual manner
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "No, no, don't leave him there.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading There is a bed in the next room.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There is a bed in the next room.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
go away from a place
From this reading "No, no, don't leave him there.
characteristic of a mother
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
a large thick pad filled with resilient material and often incorporating coiled springs, used as a bed or part of a bed
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
The faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information and knowledge.
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading There is a bed in the next room.
not any; not one
From this reading "No, no, don't leave him there.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
righteousness by virtue of being pious
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading There is a bed in the next room.
express in words
From this reading But what could she say?
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading But what could she say?
possessive form of “son” — a male human offspring
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
carry out
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading There is a bed in the next room.
in or at that place or location
From this reading "No, no, don't leave him there.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
not made or become different
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
precisely as stated
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading But what could she say?
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading It was Maurice's room; it was the bed in which Maurice had died, and which Constance with maternal piety had kept unchanged, consecrating the room to her son's memory.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
in the company of; together with
From this reading We will take him up very gently with the mattress, and lay him with it on the bed."
Chapter 15 of Fruitfulness by Émile Zola holds 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 411 sentences of Fruitfulness, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of Fruitfulness by Émile Zola exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 Fruitfulness by Émile Zola on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8107 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #10330 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #10330, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1622 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Fruitfulness section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 20 chapters of Fruitfulness 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 Fruitfulness, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
