Chapter 9 of "I Say No" is here in full — 213 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of "I Say No" is here in full — 213 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room. “Can you explain this?” she began. “No, miss.” “May I ask if you have come here by Mrs. Ellmother’s invitation?” “By Mrs. Ellmother’s _request_, miss.”
Chapter 9 of "I Say No" is here in full — 213 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/42 · 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.
the act of leaving secretly or without explanation
From this reading “Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.”
the act of discovering something
From this reading “Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.”
make plain and comprehensible
From this reading ““Can you explain this?” she began.”
incapable of being explained or accounted for
From this reading “Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.”
a request (spoken or written) to participate or be present or take part in something
From this reading ““May I ask if you have come here by Mrs. Ellmother’s invitation?””
increase the likelihood of
From this reading “Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.”
express the need or desire for
a person working in the service of another (especially in the household)
From this reading “Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.”
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.
perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
later than; following
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “May I ask if you have come here by Mrs. Ellmother’s invitation?”
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading “Can you explain this?” she began.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading “May I ask if you have come here by Mrs. Ellmother’s invitation?”
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading “Can you explain this?” she began.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading “May I ask if you have come here by Mrs. Ellmother’s invitation?”
the act of leaving secretly or without explanation
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
the act of discovering something
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
make plain and comprehensible
From this reading “Can you explain this?” she began.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “May I ask if you have come here by Mrs. Ellmother’s invitation?”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading “May I ask if you have come here by Mrs. Ellmother’s invitation?”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “May I ask if you have come here by Mrs. Ellmother’s invitation?”
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “May I ask if you have come here by Mrs. Ellmother’s invitation?”
incapable of being explained or accounted for
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
a request (spoken or written) to participate or be present or take part in something
From this reading “May I ask if you have come here by Mrs. Ellmother’s invitation?”
increase the likelihood of
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading “May I ask if you have come here by Mrs. Ellmother’s invitation?”
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading “No, miss.”
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
not any; not one
From this reading “No, miss.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
express the need or desire for
From this reading “By Mrs. Ellmother’s _request_, miss.”
a person working in the service of another (especially in the household)
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Can you explain this?” she began.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “Can you explain this?” she began.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Emily’s first act--after the discovery of Mrs. Ellmother’s incomprehensible disappearance--was to invite the new servant to follow her into the sitting-room.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Can you explain this?” she began.
Chapter 9 of "I Say No" by Wilkie Collins holds 213 sentences, grouped into 43 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 9 holds 213 sentences of "I Say No", unabridged, divided into 43 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of "I Say No" by Wilkie Collins exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 213 sentences, grouped into 43 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 43 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 43 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 9 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 "I Say No" by Wilkie Collins on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9092 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1629 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1629, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1819 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through "I Say No" section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of "I Say No" 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 "I Say No", each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
