Interrupted

Chapter XXIII

Chapter 23 of Interrupted is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Pansy • Curated US English Learning Edition

English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

UNPALATABLE TRUTHS.

"YES," said Claire, "I will try."

But she said it with a long-drawn sigh.

This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

She wanted to fight the demon of alcohol wherever found--at least, she had thought that she did; but who would have supposed that it could bring her into such strange contact with Mrs. Russel Ansted?

Narrator

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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English

LEARNER DICTIONARY

Archivist

/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter XXIII Reading 1/23

Interrupted

Chapter XXIII

Chapter 23 of Interrupted is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/23 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

UNPALATABLE TRUTHS.

/ənˈpælətəbəl truːθs/

Line 2

"YES," said Claire, "I will try."

Line 3

But she said it with a long-drawn sigh.

Line 4

This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

/ðɪs wɑːz wɜːrk ðæt wɑːz ˈʌtərli dɪˈsteɪstfəl tuː hɜːr ənd ʃiː sɔː bʌt ˈlɪtəl hoʊp ʌv əˈkɑːmplɪʃɪŋ ˈeniθɪŋ baɪ əˈtemptɪŋ ɪt/

Line 5

She wanted to fight the demon of alcohol wherever found--at least, she had thought that she did; but who would have supposed that it could bring her into such strange contact with Mrs. Russel Ansted?

Learner Dictionary

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.

accomplishing verb US /əˈkɑːmplɪʃɪŋ/

-ing form of “accomplish” — put in effect

From this reading “This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.”

alcohol noun US /ˈælkəhɑːl/

a liquor or brew containing alcohol as the active agent

From this reading “She wanted to fight the demon of alcohol wherever found--at least, she had thought that she did; but who would have supposed that it could bring her into such strange contact with Mrs. Russel Ansted?”

attempting verb US /əˈtemptɪŋ/

-ing form of “attempt” — make an effort or attempt

From this reading “This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.”

contact noun US /ˈkɑːntækt/

close interaction

demon noun US /ˈdiːmən/

an evil supernatural being

distasteful adjective US /dɪˈsteɪstfəl/

not pleasing in odor or taste

From this reading “This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.”

truths noun US /truːθs/

plural of “truth” — a fact that has been verified

From this reading “UNPALATABLE TRUTHS.”

unpalatable adjective US /ənˈpælətəbəl/

not pleasant or acceptable to the taste or mind

From this reading “UNPALATABLE TRUTHS.”

All words in this reading · 57

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading But she said it with a long-drawn sigh.

accomplishingverbUS /əˈkɑːmplɪʃɪŋ/

-ing form of “accomplish” — put in effect

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

alcoholnounUS /ˈælkəhɑːl/

a liquor or brew containing alcohol as the active agent

From this reading She wanted to fight the demon of alcohol wherever found--at least, she had thought that she did; but who would have supposed that it could bring her into such strange contact with Mrs. Russel Ansted?

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

Ansted

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

anythingpronounUS /ˈeniθɪŋ/

any thing at all

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

attemptingverbUS /əˈtemptɪŋ/

-ing form of “attempt” — make an effort or attempt

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

bringverbUS /brɪŋ/

take something or somebody with oneself somewhere

ButconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading But she said it with a long-drawn sigh.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

Claire

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "YES," said Claire, "I will try."

contactnounUS /ˈkɑːntækt/

close interaction

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

demonnounUS /ˈdiːmən/

an evil supernatural being

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

distastefuladjectiveUS /dɪˈsteɪstfəl/

not pleasing in odor or taste

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

fightverbUS /faɪt/

be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight

foundverbUS /faʊnd/

set up or found

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

hopenounUS /hoʊp/

a specific instance of feeling hopeful

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

From this reading "YES," said Claire, "I will try."

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading But she said it with a long-drawn sigh.

leastadjectiveUS /liːst/

the superlative of “little” that can be used with mass nouns and is usually preceded by “the”; a quantifier meaning smallest in amount or extent or degree

littleadjectiveUS /ˈlɪtəl/

limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

long-drawn

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading But she said it with a long-drawn sigh.

MrsnounUS /ˈmɪsɪz/

a form of address for a married woman

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

Russel

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

saidadjectiveUS /sed/

being the one previously mentioned or spoken of

From this reading "YES," said Claire, "I will try."

sawverbUS /sɔː/

cut with a saw

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading But she said it with a long-drawn sigh.

sighverbUS /saɪ/

heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily

From this reading But she said it with a long-drawn sigh.

strangeadjectiveUS /streɪndʒ/

being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird

suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/

of the kind already mentioned

supposedadjectiveUS /səˈpoʊzd/

required or under orders

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

ThisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

thoughtnounUS /θɔːt/

the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

TRUTHSnounUS /truːθs/

plural of “truth” — a fact that has been verified

From this reading UNPALATABLE TRUTHS.

tryverbUS /traɪ/

make an effort or attempt

From this reading "YES," said Claire, "I will try."

UNPALATABLEadjectiveUS /ənˈpælətəbəl/

not pleasant or acceptable to the taste or mind

From this reading UNPALATABLE TRUTHS.

utterlyadverbUS /ˈʌtərli/

completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

wantedadjectiveUS /ˈwɔːntɪd/

desired or wished for or sought

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

whereverconjunctionUS /weˈrevər/

in or to any place at all

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

willmodal verbUS /wɪl/

used to talk about the future, or about willingness

From this reading "YES," said Claire, "I will try."

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading But she said it with a long-drawn sigh.

workverbUS /wɜːrk/

exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity

From this reading This was work that was utterly distasteful to her, and she saw but little hope of accomplishing anything by attempting it.

wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

YESnounUS /jes/

an affirmative

From this reading "YES," said Claire, "I will try."

Chapter 23 of Interrupted by Pansy holds 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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.

What does chapter 23 of Interrupted contain?

Chapter 23 holds 118 sentences of Interrupted, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 23 of Interrupted by Pansy exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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.

How do I study chapter 23 of Interrupted?

Work through the 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 24 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.

Can chapter 23 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 23 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.

Questions about reading Interrupted

Common questions about reading Interrupted by Pansy on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Interrupted?

Yes. All 4231 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #45537 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Interrupted is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #45537, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Interrupted take to read?

About 352 minutes of reading across 847 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Interrupted section by section

How to work through Interrupted section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

Open a chapter

Choose one of the 28 chapters of Interrupted to begin.
Read one section

Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.
Listen and tap

Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in Interrupted

Words and structures a reader meets early in Interrupted, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Author: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Interrupted; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Endless: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Interrupted; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Chain: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Interrupted; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Solomon: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Interrupted; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.

Chapter XXIII

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Can chapter 23 be read aloud to me?

Questions about reading Interrupted

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Open a chapter

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Vocabulary met early in Interrupted