Chapter 3 of Gobseck is here in full — 174 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Gobseck is here in full — 174 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“I went back to my room, feeling stupefied. The little, wizened old man had grown great. He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified. I shrank, shuddering, from life and my kind. “‘Is it really so?’
Chapter 3 of Gobseck is here in full — 174 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/34 · 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.
coins made of gold
From this reading “He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.”
(of animals) fully developed
From this reading “The little, wizened old man had grown great.”
inflected form of “personify” — invest with or as with a body; give body to
From this reading “He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.”
inflected form of “shrink” — wither, as with a loss of moisture
From this reading “I shrank, shuddering, from life and my kind.”
shaking convulsively or violently
From this reading “I shrank, shuddering, from life and my kind.”
an arbitrary sign (written or printed) that has acquired a conventional significance
From this reading “He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.”
a person given to fanciful speculations and enthusiasms with little regard for what is actually possible
From this reading “He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.”
lean and wrinkled by shrinkage as from age or illness
From this reading “The little, wizened old man had grown great.”
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 He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I shrank, shuddering, from life and my kind.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading “I went back to my room, feeling stupefied.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
opinion or judgment
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
the experiencing of affective and emotional states
From this reading “I went back to my room, feeling stupefied.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading I shrank, shuddering, from life and my kind.
coins made of gold
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading The little, wizened old man had grown great.
(of animals) fully developed
From this reading The little, wizened old man had grown great.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The little, wizened old man had grown great.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I went back to my room, feeling stupefied.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “‘Is it really so?’
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “‘Is it really so?’
having or showing a tender and considerate and helpful nature; used especially of persons and their behavior
From this reading I shrank, shuddering, from life and my kind.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading I shrank, shuddering, from life and my kind.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading The little, wizened old man had grown great.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The little, wizened old man had grown great.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “I went back to my room, feeling stupefied.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading The little, wizened old man had grown great.
inflected form of “personify” — invest with or as with a body; give body to
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
possession of controlling influence
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading “‘Is it really so?’
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading “I went back to my room, feeling stupefied.
inflected form of “shrink” — wither, as with a loss of moisture
From this reading I shrank, shuddering, from life and my kind.
shaking convulsively or violently
From this reading I shrank, shuddering, from life and my kind.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “‘Is it really so?’
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
as if struck dumb with astonishment and surprise
From this reading “I went back to my room, feeling stupefied.
an arbitrary sign (written or printed) that has acquired a conventional significance
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The little, wizened old man had grown great.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “I went back to my room, feeling stupefied.
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
a person given to fanciful speculations and enthusiasms with little regard for what is actually possible
From this reading He had been metamorphosed under my eyes into a strange visionary symbol; he had come to be the power of gold personified.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading “I went back to my room, feeling stupefied.
lean and wrinkled by shrinkage as from age or illness
From this reading The little, wizened old man had grown great.
Chapter 3 of Gobseck by Honoré de Balzac holds 174 sentences, grouped into 35 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 3 holds 174 sentences of Gobseck, unabridged, divided into 35 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Gobseck by Honoré de Balzac exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 174 sentences, grouped into 35 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 35 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 35 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 3 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 Gobseck by Honoré de Balzac on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1170 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1389 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1389, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 97 minutes of reading across 234 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Gobseck section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of Gobseck 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 Gobseck, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
