Chapter 21 of Historical Romances is here in full — 278 sentences across 56 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXI
Chapter 21 of Historical Romances is here in full — 278 sentences across 56 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
SACRILEGE! M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment. "What! No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair. The Magistrates stared, one and all.
Chapter 21 of Historical Romances is here in full — 278 sentences across 56 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/55 · 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 human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading “No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.”
the feeling that accompanies something extremely surprising
From this reading “M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.”
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading “No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.”
the literary culture
From this reading “No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.”
plural of “magistrate” — a lay judge or civil authority who administers the law (especially one who conducts a court dealing with minor offenses)
From this reading “The Magistrates stared, one and all.”
blasphemous behavior; the act of depriving something of its sacred character
From this reading “SACRILEGE!”
a space reserved for sitting (as in a theater or on a train or airplane)
From this reading “M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.”
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading “The Magistrates stared, one and all.”
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.
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 No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.
(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 The Magistrates stared, one and all.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The Magistrates stared, one and all.
a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.
the feeling that accompanies something extremely surprising
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.
a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
one or the other of two
From this reading No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
the literary culture
From this reading No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
plural of “magistrate” — a lay judge or civil authority who administers the law (especially one who conducts a court dealing with minor offenses)
From this reading The Magistrates stared, one and all.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
not any; not one
From this reading No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading No letters?" he cried, a hand on either arm of his chair.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading The Magistrates stared, one and all.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
blasphemous behavior; the act of depriving something of its sacred character
From this reading SACRILEGE!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
a space reserved for sitting (as in a theater or on a train or airplane)
From this reading M. de Montsoreau, Lieutenant-Governor of Saumur, almost rose from his seat in his astonishment.
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading The Magistrates stared, one and all.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The Magistrates stared, one and all.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What!
Chapter 21 of Historical Romances by Stanley John Weyman holds 278 sentences, grouped into 56 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 21 holds 278 sentences of Historical Romances, unabridged, divided into 56 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 21 of Historical Romances by Stanley John Weyman exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 278 sentences, grouped into 56 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 56 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 56 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 21 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 Historical Romances by Stanley John Weyman on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 19958 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #39136 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #39136, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 3992 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Historical Romances section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Historical Romances 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 Historical Romances, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
