Chapter 10 of Grammar-land is here in full — 85 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter X
Chapter 10 of Grammar-land is here in full — 85 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
DR. VERB’S THREE TENSES AND NUMBER AND PERSON. “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’” “Conjugation, my lord, if you like,” said Dr. Verb, bowing. “I _do_ like, certainly,” replied the Judge.
Chapter 10 of Grammar-land is here in full — 85 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/17 · 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.
bending the head or body or knee as a sign of reverence or submission or shame or greeting
From this reading ““Conjugation, my lord, if you like,” said Dr. Verb, bowing.”
the state of being joined together
From this reading ““Conjugation, my lord, if you like,” said Dr. Verb, bowing.”
past form of “examine” — consider in detail and subject to an analysis in order to discover essential features or meaning
From this reading ““Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’””
the branch of linguistics that deals with syntax and morphology (and sometimes also deals with semantics)
From this reading ““Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’””
determine the result of (a competition)
From this reading ““Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’””
the property possessed by a sum or total or indefinite quantity of units or individuals
From this reading “VERB’S THREE TENSES AND NUMBER AND PERSON.”
a short musical composition with words
From this reading ““Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’””
the word class that serves as the predicate of a sentence
From this reading “VERB’S THREE TENSES AND NUMBER AND PERSON.”
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 ““Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’””
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading VERB’S THREE TENSES AND NUMBER AND PERSON.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
bending the head or body or knee as a sign of reverence or submission or shame or greeting
From this reading “Conjugation, my lord, if you like,” said Dr. Verb, bowing.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading “I _do_ like, certainly,” replied the Judge.
the state of being joined together
From this reading “Conjugation, my lord, if you like,” said Dr. Verb, bowing.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “I _do_ like, certainly,” replied the Judge.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading DR.
past form of “examine” — consider in detail and subject to an analysis in order to discover essential features or meaning
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
the branch of linguistics that deals with syntax and morphology (and sometimes also deals with semantics)
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I _do_ like, certainly,” replied the Judge.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “Conjugation, my lord, if you like,” said Dr. Verb, bowing.
determine the result of (a competition)
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “Conjugation, my lord, if you like,” said Dr. Verb, bowing.
terms referring to the Judeo-Christian God
From this reading “Conjugation, my lord, if you like,” said Dr. Verb, bowing.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “Conjugation, my lord, if you like,” said Dr. Verb, bowing.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
the property possessed by a sum or total or indefinite quantity of units or individuals
From this reading VERB’S THREE TENSES AND NUMBER AND PERSON.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
a human being
From this reading VERB’S THREE TENSES AND NUMBER AND PERSON.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading “I _do_ like, certainly,” replied the Judge.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
a short musical composition with words
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading VERB’S THREE TENSES AND NUMBER AND PERSON.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading VERB’S THREE TENSES AND NUMBER AND PERSON.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
the word class that serves as the predicate of a sentence
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading VERB’S THREE TENSES AND NUMBER AND PERSON.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Now, Dr. Verb,” said Judge Grammar, the next day, “we have well examined this that you call your ‘Song of the verb To be.’”
Chapter 10 of Grammar-land by M. L. Nesbitt holds 85 sentences, grouped into 17 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 10 holds 85 sentences of Grammar-land, unabridged, divided into 17 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 10 of Grammar-land by M. L. Nesbitt exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 85 sentences, grouped into 17 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 17 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 17 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 10 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 Grammar-land by M. L. Nesbitt on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1319 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #66712 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #66712, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 109 minutes of reading across 264 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Grammar-land section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 18 chapters of Grammar-land 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 Grammar-land, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
