Chapter 5 of If: A Play in Four Acts is here in full — 207 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of If: A Play in Four Acts is here in full — 207 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
John, John. I wish you'd marry me. JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago. What's the good of it? MIRALDA I had a fancy that I wished you would.
Chapter 5 of If: A Play in Four Acts is here in full — 207 sentences across 42 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/41 · 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.
in the past
From this reading “JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.”
money collected under a tariff
From this reading “JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.”
something many people believe that is false
From this reading “MIRALDA I had a fancy that I wished you would.”
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading “John, John.”
take in marriage
From this reading “I wish you'd marry me.”
the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one
From this reading “JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.”
the process of using your mind to consider something carefully
From this reading “JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.”
past form of “wish” — hope for; have a wish
From this reading “MIRALDA I had a fancy that I wished you would.”
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 MIRALDA I had a fancy that I wished you would.
anew
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
in the past
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
at or toward the back of something
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
money collected under a tariff
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
something many people believe that is false
From this reading MIRALDA I had a fancy that I wished you would.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading What's the good of it?
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading MIRALDA I had a fancy that I wished you would.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I wish you'd marry me.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading What's the good of it?
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading John, John.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
take in marriage
From this reading I wish you'd marry me.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I wish you'd marry me.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading What's the good of it?
the process of using your mind to consider something carefully
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What's the good of it?
hope for; have a wish
From this reading I wish you'd marry me.
past form of “wish” — hope for; have a wish
From this reading MIRALDA I had a fancy that I wished you would.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading MIRALDA I had a fancy that I wished you would.
a late time of life
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading MIRALDA I had a fancy that I wished you would.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I wish you'd marry me.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading JOHN Miralda, you're thinking of those old customs again that we left behind us seven years ago.
Chapter 5 of If: A Play in Four Acts by Lord Dunsany holds 207 sentences, grouped into 42 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 5 holds 207 sentences of If: A Play in Four Acts, unabridged, divided into 42 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of If: A Play in Four Acts by Lord Dunsany exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 207 sentences, grouped into 42 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 42 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 42 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 5 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 If: A Play in Four Acts by Lord Dunsany on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1044 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1311 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1311, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 87 minutes of reading across 209 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through If: A Play in Four Acts section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of If: A Play in Four Acts 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 If: A Play in Four Acts, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
