Learn English through classic literature • Five-line readings • Clear US narration
VELMORA ACADEMY
Academy of Archival Languages & Memory Studies
Menu Close
Jean of the Lazy A
Jean of the Lazy A

Chapter XII · Chapter 12

Chapter 12 of Jean of the Lazy A is here in full — 292 sentences across 59 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Jean of the Lazy A
Context Illustration Reading 1/58 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.
The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.
She would start the book off weirdly with mysterious sounds in an empty room.
That, she argued, should fix firmly the interest of the reader right at the start.
By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.
0:00 / 0:00
Speed 0.75x
AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Jean of the Lazy A

Chapter XII · Chapter 12

Chapter 12 of Jean of the Lazy A is here in full — 292 sentences across 59 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/58 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.
Line 2
The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.
Line 3
She would start the book off weirdly with mysterious sounds in an empty room.
Line 4
That, she argued, should fix firmly the interest of the reader right at the start.
Line 5
By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

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.

Memory noun US /ˈmem.ər.i/

The faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information and knowledge.

From this reading “The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.”

All words in this reading · 75

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.

a

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

an

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

and

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

argued

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

From this reading That, she argued, should fix firmly the interest of the reader right at the start.

artistic

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

From this reading By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

aspect

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

From this reading By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

at

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

From this reading That, she argued, should fix firmly the interest of the reader right at the start.

been

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

beginning

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

book

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

bottle

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

breakfasted

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

By

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

From this reading By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

came

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

crackers

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

deeply

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

DOUBLE

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

empty

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

From this reading She would start the book off weirdly with mysterious sounds in an empty room.

firmly

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

From this reading That, she argued, should fix firmly the interest of the reader right at the start.

fished

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

fix

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

From this reading That, she argued, should fix firmly the interest of the reader right at the start.

footsteps

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

From this reading By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

FOR

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

from

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

GAY

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

had

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

From this reading By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

happened

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

have

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

her

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

however

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

From this reading By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

in

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

From this reading She would start the book off weirdly with mysterious sounds in an empty room.

interest

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

From this reading That, she argued, should fix firmly the interest of the reader right at the start.

Jean

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

last

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

left

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

luncheon

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

material

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

From this reading By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

meditated

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

memorynounUS /ˈmem.ər.i/

The faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information and knowledge.

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

MURIEL

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

mysterious

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

From this reading She would start the book off weirdly with mysterious sounds in an empty room.

night

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

of

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

off

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

From this reading She would start the book off weirdly with mysterious sounds in an empty room.

olive

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

olives

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

over

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

pair

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

previous

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

proper

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

reader

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

From this reading That, she argued, should fix firmly the interest of the reader right at the start.

right

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

From this reading That, she argued, should fix firmly the interest of the reader right at the start.

room

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

From this reading She would start the book off weirdly with mysterious sounds in an empty room.

scissors

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

she

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

should

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

From this reading That, she argued, should fix firmly the interest of the reader right at the start.

smiled

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

soda

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

sounds

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

From this reading She would start the book off weirdly with mysterious sounds in an empty room.

start

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

From this reading She would start the book off weirdly with mysterious sounds in an empty room.

swung

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

From this reading By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

That

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

From this reading That, she argued, should fix firmly the interest of the reader right at the start.

the

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

those

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

From this reading By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

thoughts

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

From this reading By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

time

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

From this reading By the time she had fished the olive from the bottle, however, her thoughts swung from the artistic to the material aspect of those mysterious footsteps.

TO

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

unsatisfactorily

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

upon

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

vividly

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

weirdly

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

From this reading She would start the book off weirdly with mysterious sounds in an empty room.

which

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

While

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

From this reading TO "DOUBLE" FOR MURIEL GAY While she breakfasted unsatisfactorily upon soda crackers and a bottle of olives which happened to have been left over from a previous luncheon, Jean meditated deeply upon the proper beginning of a book.

with

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

From this reading The memory of last night came to her vividly, and she smiled while she fished with a pair of scissors for an olive.

would

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

From this reading She would start the book off weirdly with mysterious sounds in an empty room.

Chapter 12 of Jean of the Lazy A by B. M. Bower holds 292 sentences, grouped into 59 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.

What does chapter 12 of Jean of the Lazy A contain?

Chapter 12 holds 292 sentences of Jean of the Lazy A, unabridged, divided into 59 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 12 of Jean of the Lazy A by B. M. Bower exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 292 sentences, grouped into 59 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 12 of Jean of the Lazy A?

Work through the 59 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 59 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 12 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 12 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 Jean of the Lazy A

Common questions about reading Jean of the Lazy A by B. M. Bower on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Jean of the Lazy A?

Yes. All 4093 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #538 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Jean of the Lazy A is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #538, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Jean of the Lazy A take to read?

About 341 minutes of reading across 819 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Jean of the Lazy A section by section

How to work through Jean of the Lazy A section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 26 chapters of Jean of the Lazy A to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

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

Vocabulary met early in Jean of the Lazy A

Words and structures a reader meets early in Jean of the Lazy A, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Without
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Jean of the Lazy A; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Going
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Jean of the Lazy A; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Psychological
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Jean of the Lazy A; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Discussion
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Jean of the Lazy A; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.