Chapter 1 of In the Wilderness is here in full — 156 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of In the Wilderness is here in full — 156 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear. And this was not my only anxiety. The mind at such times is not under control. With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur. I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
Chapter 1 of In the Wilderness is here in full — 156 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 21/31 · 5 reading units · Lines 101–105
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.
power to direct or determine
From this reading “The mind at such times is not under control.”
inflected form of “eat” — take in solid food
From this reading “I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.”
an inscription on a tombstone or monument in memory of the person buried there
From this reading “I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.”
superlative of “grave” — dignified and somber in manner or character and committed to keeping promises
From this reading “With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur.”
(used of conduct or character) deserving or bringing disgrace or shame
From this reading “I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.”
state of sorrow over the death or departure of a loved one
From this reading “I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.”
come to pass
From this reading “With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur.”
determined by chance or impulse or whim rather than by necessity or reason
From this reading “With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur.”
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 I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And this was not my only anxiety.
(psychiatry) a relatively permanent state of worry and nervousness occurring in a variety of mental disorders, usually accompanied by compulsive behavior or attacks of panic
From this reading And this was not my only anxiety.
any thing at all
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The mind at such times is not under control.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
have
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
on the far side of; further than
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
inflected form of “compel” — force somebody to do something
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
power to direct or determine
From this reading The mind at such times is not under control.
inflected form of “eat” — take in solid food
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
an inscription on a tombstone or monument in memory of the person buried there
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
plural of “fear” — an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight)
From this reading With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur.
plural of “friend” — a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
superlative of “grave” — dignified and somber in manner or character and committed to keeping promises
From this reading With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
a married man; a woman's partner in marriage
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
plural of “idea” — the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur.
(used of conduct or character) deserving or bringing disgrace or shame
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
form a mental image of something that is not present or that is not the case
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The mind at such times is not under control.
having or showing a tender and considerate and helpful nature; used especially of persons and their behavior
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading The mind at such times is not under control.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
used to form the superlative
From this reading With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur.
state of sorrow over the death or departure of a loved one
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading And this was not my only anxiety.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading And this was not my only anxiety.
come to pass
From this reading With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
and nothing more
From this reading And this was not my only anxiety.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading The mind at such times is not under control.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The mind at such times is not under control.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading And this was not my only anxiety.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading The mind at such times is not under control.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I cannot imagine anything more ignominious than to have a husband eaten by a bear.
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading The mind at such times is not under control.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading And this was not my only anxiety.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
determined by chance or impulse or whim rather than by necessity or reason
From this reading With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur.
in the company of; together with
From this reading With the gravest fears the most whimsical ideas will occur.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading I looked beyond the mourning friends, and thought what kind of an epitaph they would be compelled to put upon the stone.
Chapter 1 of In the Wilderness by Charles Dudley Warner holds 156 sentences, grouped into 32 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 156 sentences of In the Wilderness, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of In the Wilderness by Charles Dudley Warner exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 156 sentences, grouped into 32 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 32 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 32 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.
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Yes. All 1637 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3132 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3132, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 136 minutes of reading across 328 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through In the Wilderness section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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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 In the Wilderness, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
