Chapter 21 of Girls of the Forest is here in full — 452 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXI
Chapter 21 of Girls of the Forest is here in full — 452 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
PEN VICTORIOUS. Penelope managed to reach home unattended. She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched. Her sisters received her with whoops of astonishment and welcome. They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
Chapter 21 of Girls of the Forest is here in full — 452 sentences across 91 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/90 · 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.
covered with a layer of dust
From this reading “She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.”
(Greek mythology) the wife of Odysseus and a symbol of devotion and fidelity; for 10 years while Odysseus fought the Trojan War she resisted numerous suitors until Odysseus returned and killed them
From this reading “Penelope managed to reach home unattended.”
in an unfortunate way
From this reading “They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.”
past form of “scratch” — cause friction
From this reading “She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.”
in a sheepish manner
From this reading “They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.”
not watched
From this reading “Penelope managed to reach home unattended.”
having won
From this reading “PEN VICTORIOUS.”
plural of “whoop” — a loud hooting cry of exultation or excitement
From this reading “Her sisters received her with whoops of astonishment and welcome.”
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.
in addition
From this reading She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.
the feeling that accompanies something extremely surprising
From this reading Her sisters received her with whoops of astonishment and welcome.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
the act of drawing spatially closer to something
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
having come or been brought to a conclusion
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
limp and soiled as if dragged in the mud
From this reading She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.
covered with a layer of dust
From this reading She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Her sisters received her with whoops of astonishment and welcome.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading Penelope managed to reach home unattended.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
past form of “manage” — be successful; achieve a goal
From this reading Penelope managed to reach home unattended.
not caught with the senses or the mind
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Her sisters received her with whoops of astonishment and welcome.
a writing implement with a point from which ink flows
From this reading PEN VICTORIOUS.
(Greek mythology) the wife of Odysseus and a symbol of devotion and fidelity; for 10 years while Odysseus fought the Trojan War she resisted numerous suitors until Odysseus returned and killed them
From this reading Penelope managed to reach home unattended.
reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading Penelope managed to reach home unattended.
conforming to the established language usage of educated native speakers
From this reading Her sisters received her with whoops of astonishment and welcome.
in an unfortunate way
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
cut with a saw
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
past form of “scratch” — cause friction
From this reading She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.
in a sheepish manner
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
plural of “sister” — a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading Her sisters received her with whoops of astonishment and welcome.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
depleted of strength or energy
From this reading She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Penelope managed to reach home unattended.
consistent with fact or reality; not false
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
not watched
From this reading Penelope managed to reach home unattended.
precisely as stated
From this reading She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.
having won
From this reading PEN VICTORIOUS.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading She was tired and draggled and dusty, and also very much scratched.
accept gladly
From this reading Her sisters received her with whoops of astonishment and welcome.
at the time that
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
plural of “whoop” — a loud hooting cry of exultation or excitement
From this reading Her sisters received her with whoops of astonishment and welcome.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They had not missed her, it is true, but when they saw her coming sadly and sheepishly in at the wicket-gate they concluded that they had.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Her sisters received her with whoops of astonishment and welcome.
Chapter 21 of Girls of the Forest by L. T. Meade holds 452 sentences, grouped into 91 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 21 holds 452 sentences of Girls of the Forest, unabridged, divided into 91 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 21 of Girls of the Forest by L. T. Meade exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 452 sentences, grouped into 91 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 91 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 91 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 21 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 Girls of the Forest by L. T. Meade on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7713 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #25872 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #25872, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1543 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Girls of the Forest section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 30 chapters of Girls of the Forest 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 Girls of the Forest, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
