Chapter 1 of John Marr and Other Poems is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of John Marr and Other Poems is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow. Magnanimous, you think?—But what does Dick see? Apron to your eye! Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago. But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
Chapter 1 of John Marr and Other Poems is here in full — 424 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 31/84 · 5 reading units · Lines 151–155
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.
a garment of cloth or leather or plastic that is tied about the waist and worn to protect your clothing
From this reading “Apron to your eye!”
a curved shape in the vertical plane that spans an opening
From this reading “But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?”
give encouragement to
From this reading “Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.”
annoyed and irritable
From this reading “But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?”
backache affecting the lumbar region or lower back; can be caused by muscle strain or arthritis or vascular insufficiency or a ruptured intervertebral disc
From this reading “But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?”
noble and generous in spirit
From this reading “Magnanimous, you think?—But what does Dick see?”
fill by packing tightly
From this reading ““—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.”
a small tower extending above a building
From this reading ““—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.”
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 Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
in the past
From this reading Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
a garment of cloth or leather or plastic that is tied about the waist and worn to protect your clothing
From this reading Apron to your eye!
a curved shape in the vertical plane that spans an opening
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
exhale hard
From this reading Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
possessing or displaying courage; able to face and deal with danger or fear without flinching
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Magnanimous, you think?—But what does Dick see?
an officer holding a rank below a major but above a lieutenant
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
give encouragement to
From this reading Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
annoyed and irritable
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
someone who is a detective
From this reading Magnanimous, you think?—But what does Dick see?
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Magnanimous, you think?—But what does Dick see?
the organ of sight
From this reading Apron to your eye!
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
a commissioned military officer
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
backache affecting the lumbar region or lower back; can be caused by muscle strain or arthritis or vascular insufficiency or a ruptured intervertebral disc
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
noble and generous in spirit
From this reading Magnanimous, you think?—But what does Dick see?
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
someone who examines votes at an election
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Magnanimous, you think?—But what does Dick see?
hurting
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
fill by packing tightly
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
a base found in DNA (but not in RNA) and derived from pyrimidine; pairs with adenine
From this reading Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading Magnanimous, you think?—But what does Dick see?
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Apron to your eye!
a small tower extending above a building
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Magnanimous, you think?—But what does Dick see?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But where’s that sore one, crabbed and-severe, Lieutenant Lon Lumbago, an arch scrutineer?
which person or people
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Why, never fell a blow; Cheer up, old wifie, ’t was a long time ago.
fermented juice (of grapes especially)
From this reading “—Such, wife, was he, Old Captain Turret, who the brave wine could stow.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Magnanimous, you think?—But what does Dick see?
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Apron to your eye!
Chapter 1 of John Marr and Other Poems by Herman Melville holds 424 sentences, grouped into 85 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 424 sentences of John Marr and Other Poems, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of John Marr and Other Poems by Herman Melville exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 424 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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.
Common questions about reading John Marr and Other Poems by Herman Melville on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 824 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #12841 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #12841, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 68 minutes of reading across 165 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through John Marr and Other Poems section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 2 chapters of John Marr and Other Poems 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 John Marr and Other Poems, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
