Chapter 3 of Half Portions is here in full — 400 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Half Portions is here in full — 400 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Mrs. Brewster's light footstep sounded in the hall. She wore an all-enveloping gingham apron. "How did you like your surprise, father?" She came over to him and kissed the top of his head. "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
Chapter 3 of Half Portions is here in full — 400 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
a garment of cloth or leather or plastic that is tied about the waist and worn to protect your clothing
From this reading “She wore an all-enveloping gingham apron.”
floor consisting of open space at the top of a house just below roof; often used for storage
From this reading “"I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.”
the sound of a step of someone walking
From this reading “Mrs. Brewster's light footstep sounded in the hall.”
a clothing fabric in a plaid weave
From this reading “She wore an all-enveloping gingham apron.”
past form of “kiss” — touch with the lips or press the lips (against someone's mouth or other body part) as an expression of love, greeting, etc.
From this reading “She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.”
past form of “sound” — appear in a certain way
From this reading “Mrs. Brewster's light footstep sounded in the hall.”
the upper part of anything
From this reading “She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.”
inflected form of “wear” — be dressed in
From this reading “She wore an all-enveloping gingham apron.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She wore an all-enveloping gingham apron.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading She wore an all-enveloping gingham apron.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.
a garment of cloth or leather or plastic that is tied about the waist and worn to protect your clothing
From this reading She wore an all-enveloping gingham apron.
floor consisting of open space at the top of a house just below roof; often used for storage
From this reading "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mrs. Brewster's light footstep sounded in the hall.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading "How did you like your surprise, father?"
the main meal of the day served in the evening or at midday
From this reading "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading "How did you like your surprise, father?"
the sound of a step of someone walking
From this reading Mrs. Brewster's light footstep sounded in the hall.
the act of acquiring something
From this reading "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
a clothing fabric in a plaid weave
From this reading She wore an all-enveloping gingham apron.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading Mrs. Brewster's light footstep sounded in the hall.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "How did you like your surprise, father?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Mrs. Brewster's light footstep sounded in the hall.
past form of “kiss” — touch with the lips or press the lips (against someone's mouth or other body part) as an expression of love, greeting, etc.
From this reading She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading Mrs. Brewster's light footstep sounded in the hall.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading "How did you like your surprise, father?"
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading Mrs. Brewster's light footstep sounded in the hall.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
above and across; more than
From this reading She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She wore an all-enveloping gingham apron.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
past form of “sound” — appear in a certain way
From this reading Mrs. Brewster's light footstep sounded in the hall.
the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading "How did you like your surprise, father?"
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Mrs. Brewster's light footstep sounded in the hall.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.
the upper part of anything
From this reading She came over to him and kissed the top of his head.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "I'm getting dinner so that Gussie can go on with the attic.
inflected form of “wear” — be dressed in
From this reading She wore an all-enveloping gingham apron.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "How did you like your surprise, father?"
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "How did you like your surprise, father?"
Chapter 3 of Half Portions by Edna Ferber holds 400 sentences, grouped into 80 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 3 holds 400 sentences of Half Portions, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Half Portions by Edna Ferber exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 400 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 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.
