Chapter 20 of It Never Can Happen Again is here in full — 347 sentences across 70 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of It Never Can Happen Again is here in full — 347 sentences across 70 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AT ROYD AGAIN. THE BREAD OF IDLENESS. A GOOD PLAIN COOK. A DIALOGUE BETWEEN A PRIEST AND A PROFANE AUTHOR. THE RECTORY AND ITS GUEST, LIZARANN.
Chapter 20 of It Never Can Happen Again is here in full — 347 sentences across 70 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/69 · 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.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading “A DIALOGUE BETWEEN A PRIEST AND A PROFANE AUTHOR.”
prepare a hot meal
From this reading “A GOOD PLAIN COOK.”
a conversation between two persons
From this reading “A DIALOGUE BETWEEN A PRIEST AND A PROFANE AUTHOR.”
a visitor to whom hospitality is extended
From this reading “THE RECTORY AND ITS GUEST, LIZARANN.”
having no employment
From this reading “THE BREAD OF IDLENESS.”
a clergyman in Christian churches who has the authority to perform or administer various religious rites; one of the Holy Orders
From this reading “A DIALOGUE BETWEEN A PRIEST AND A PROFANE AUTHOR.”
characterized by profanity or cursing
From this reading “A DIALOGUE BETWEEN A PRIEST AND A PROFANE AUTHOR.”
an official residence provided by a church for its parson or vicar or rector
From this reading “THE RECTORY AND ITS GUEST, LIZARANN.”
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 A GOOD PLAIN COOK.
anew
From this reading AT ROYD AGAIN.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A DIALOGUE BETWEEN A PRIEST AND A PROFANE AUTHOR.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading AT ROYD AGAIN.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading A DIALOGUE BETWEEN A PRIEST AND A PROFANE AUTHOR.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading A DIALOGUE BETWEEN A PRIEST AND A PROFANE AUTHOR.
food made from dough of flour or meal and usually raised with yeast or baking powder and then baked
From this reading THE BREAD OF IDLENESS.
prepare a hot meal
From this reading A GOOD PLAIN COOK.
a conversation between two persons
From this reading A DIALOGUE BETWEEN A PRIEST AND A PROFANE AUTHOR.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading A GOOD PLAIN COOK.
a visitor to whom hospitality is extended
From this reading THE RECTORY AND ITS GUEST, LIZARANN.
having no employment
From this reading THE BREAD OF IDLENESS.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading THE RECTORY AND ITS GUEST, LIZARANN.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE RECTORY AND ITS GUEST, LIZARANN.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE BREAD OF IDLENESS.
clearly revealed to the mind or the senses or judgment
From this reading A GOOD PLAIN COOK.
a clergyman in Christian churches who has the authority to perform or administer various religious rites; one of the Holy Orders
From this reading A DIALOGUE BETWEEN A PRIEST AND A PROFANE AUTHOR.
characterized by profanity or cursing
From this reading A DIALOGUE BETWEEN A PRIEST AND A PROFANE AUTHOR.
an official residence provided by a church for its parson or vicar or rector
From this reading THE RECTORY AND ITS GUEST, LIZARANN.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AT ROYD AGAIN.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE BREAD OF IDLENESS.
Chapter 20 of It Never Can Happen Again by William De Morgan holds 347 sentences, grouped into 70 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 20 holds 347 sentences of It Never Can Happen Again, unabridged, divided into 70 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of It Never Can Happen Again by William De Morgan exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 347 sentences, grouped into 70 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 70 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 70 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 20 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 It Never Can Happen Again by William De Morgan on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 19361 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #46228 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #46228, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 3873 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through It Never Can Happen Again section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of It Never Can Happen Again 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 It Never Can Happen Again, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
