Chapter 1 of Girls of the True Blue is here in full — 15 sentences across 3 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Girls of the True Blue is here in full — 15 sentences across 3 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc. Edinburgh: Printed by W. & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross. Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens. “Cross!” he said to himself; “why, it is one of the dearest little faces in the world.”
Chapter 1 of Girls of the True Blue is here in full — 15 sentences across 3 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/3 · 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.
English architect (1723-1796)
From this reading “& R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.”
the capital of Scotland; located in the Lothian Region on the south side of the Firth of Forth
From this reading “Edinburgh: Printed by W.”
plural of “even” — the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading ““Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.”
plural of “kitten” — young domestic cat
From this reading “Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens.”
small in range or scope
From this reading “& R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.”
your grandmother
From this reading “& R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.”
the state of not existing
From this reading ““Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.”
the likelihood of a thing occurring rather than not occurring
From this reading ““Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.”
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 “Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens.”
In this reading ““Cross!” he said to himself; “why, it is one of the dearest little faces in the world.””
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.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Edinburgh: Printed by W.
English architect (1723-1796)
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
travel across or pass over
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
a beloved person; used as terms of endearment
From this reading “Cross!” he said to himself; “why, it is one of the dearest little faces in the world.”
the capital of Scotland; located in the Lothian Region on the south side of the Firth of Forth
From this reading Edinburgh: Printed by W.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
plural of “even” — the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
plural of “face” — the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading “Cross!” he said to himself; “why, it is one of the dearest little faces in the world.”
start firing a weapon
From this reading Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading “Cross!” he said to himself; “why, it is one of the dearest little faces in the world.”
the act of retaining something
From this reading Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens.
exceedingly bad
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “Cross!” he said to himself; “why, it is one of the dearest little faces in the world.”
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Cross!” he said to himself; “why, it is one of the dearest little faces in the world.”
plural of “kitten” — young domestic cat
From this reading Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
small in range or scope
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “Cross!” he said to himself; “why, it is one of the dearest little faces in the world.”
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
your grandmother
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens.
the state of not existing
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
the likelihood of a thing occurring rather than not occurring
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading “Cross!” he said to himself; “why, it is one of the dearest little faces in the world.”
completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers
From this reading Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens.
past form of “print” — put into print
From this reading Edinburgh: Printed by W.
a unit of radiation exposure; the dose of ionizing radiation that will produce 1 electrostatic unit of electricity in 1 cc of dry air
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
filled with satisfaction
From this reading Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens.
be seated
From this reading Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens.
precisely as stated
From this reading & R. Chambers, Limited “He is not horrid at all,” said Nan, very cross.
a heavy grey-white metallic element; the pure form is used mainly in electrical applications; it is found in several ores including wolframite and scheelite
From this reading Edinburgh: Printed by W.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Nan was perfectly satisfied to sit near the fire holding the kittens.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading “Cross!” he said to himself; “why, it is one of the dearest little faces in the world.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Miss Nonentity,” “The Odds and the Evens,” “Light o’ the Morning,” “The Girls of St. Wode’s,” etc.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading “Cross!” he said to himself; “why, it is one of the dearest little faces in the world.”
Chapter 1 of Girls of the True Blue by L. T. Meade holds 15 sentences, grouped into 3 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 1 holds 15 sentences of Girls of the True Blue, unabridged, divided into 3 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Girls of the True Blue by L. T. Meade exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 15 sentences, grouped into 3 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 3 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 3 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 1 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 True Blue by L. T. Meade on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6672 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #42556 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #42556, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 556 minutes of reading across 1335 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Girls of the True Blue section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 36 chapters of Girls of the True Blue 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 True Blue, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
