Chapter 1 of Half Portions is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Half Portions is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Her hands were clasped behind her, too. In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it. The girl's head came up, stiffly. "Listen. I'm going to marry Daniel Oakley."
Chapter 1 of Half Portions is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 80/83 · 5 reading units · Lines 396–400
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.
giving or marked by complete attention to
From this reading “In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.”
(Old Testament) a youth who was taken into the court of Nebuchadnezzar and given divine protection when thrown into a den of lions (6th century BC)
From this reading “I'm going to marry Daniel Oakley."”
possessive form of “girl” — a young female
From this reading “The girl's head came up, stiffly.”
United States sharpshooter who was featured in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show (1860-1926)
From this reading “I'm going to marry Daniel Oakley."”
past form of “resemble” — appear like; be similar or bear a likeness to
From this reading “In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.”
at the same instant
From this reading “In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.”
in a startling manner
From this reading “In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.”
in a stiff manner
From this reading “The girl's head came up, stiffly.”
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.
giving or marked by complete attention to
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
matters of personal concern
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
at or toward the back of something
From this reading Her hands were clasped behind her, too.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading The girl's head came up, stiffly.
past form of “clasp” — hold firmly and tightly
From this reading Her hands were clasped behind her, too.
(Old Testament) a youth who was taken into the court of Nebuchadnezzar and given divine protection when thrown into a den of lions (6th century BC)
From this reading I'm going to marry Daniel Oakley."
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
possessive form of “girl” — a young female
From this reading The girl's head came up, stiffly.
the act of departing
From this reading I'm going to marry Daniel Oakley."
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading Her hands were clasped behind her, too.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading The girl's head came up, stiffly.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Her hands were clasped behind her, too.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I'm going to marry Daniel Oakley."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
used to form the comparative of some adjectives and adverbs
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
hear with intention
From this reading "Listen.
strongly marked; easily noticeable
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
take in marriage
From this reading I'm going to marry Daniel Oakley."
a particular point in time
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
United States sharpshooter who was featured in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show (1860-1926)
From this reading I'm going to marry Daniel Oakley."
have ownership or possession of
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
past form of “resemble” — appear like; be similar or bear a likeness to
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
at the same instant
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
in a startling manner
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
in a stiff manner
From this reading The girl's head came up, stiffly.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
in or at that place or location
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I'm going to marry Daniel Oakley."
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading Her hands were clasped behind her, too.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading In that moment, as she stood there, she resembled her mother and her father so startlingly and simultaneously that the two, had they been less absorbed in their own affairs, must have marked it.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading The girl's head came up, stiffly.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Her hands were clasped behind her, too.
Chapter 1 of Half Portions by Edna Ferber holds 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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 416 sentences of Half Portions, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Half Portions by Edna Ferber exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 Half Portions by Edna Ferber on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5692 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #14714 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #14714, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 474 minutes of reading across 1139 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Half Portions section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 14 chapters of Half Portions 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 Half Portions, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
