Chapter 1 of Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice is here in full — 386 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice is here in full — 386 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement! No matter, Jurgen, the morning is brighter than the evening. How I will reward you, to be sure!" So Jurgen thanked the simple old creature politely. And when Jurgen reached home his wife was nowhere to be seen.
Chapter 1 of Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice is here in full — 386 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 25/77 · 5 reading units · Lines 121–125
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.
comparative of “bright” — emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
From this reading “No matter, Jurgen, the morning is brighter than the evening.”
an occurrence of something
From this reading “Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!”
management that is careless or inefficient
From this reading “Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!”
an insignificant place
From this reading “And when Jurgen reached home his wife was nowhere to be seen.”
in a polite manner
From this reading “So Jurgen thanked the simple old creature politely.”
deserving regret
From this reading “Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!”
a recompense for worthy acts or retribution for wrongdoing
From this reading “How I will reward you, to be sure!"”
past form of “thank” — express gratitude or show appreciation to
From this reading “So Jurgen thanked the simple old creature politely.”
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 Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And when Jurgen reached home his wife was nowhere to be seen.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading How I will reward you, to be sure!"
comparative of “bright” — emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
From this reading No matter, Jurgen, the morning is brighter than the evening.
a living organism characterized by voluntary movement
From this reading So Jurgen thanked the simple old creature politely.
dearly loved
From this reading Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading No matter, Jurgen, the morning is brighter than the evening.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading And when Jurgen reached home his wife was nowhere to be seen.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading And when Jurgen reached home his wife was nowhere to be seen.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading How I will reward you, to be sure!"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading How I will reward you, to be sure!"
an occurrence of something
From this reading Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading No matter, Jurgen, the morning is brighter than the evening.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading No matter, Jurgen, the morning is brighter than the evening.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!
management that is careless or inefficient
From this reading Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading No matter, Jurgen, the morning is brighter than the evening.
used to form the superlative
From this reading Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!
not any; not one
From this reading No matter, Jurgen, the morning is brighter than the evening.
an insignificant place
From this reading And when Jurgen reached home his wife was nowhere to be seen.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading So Jurgen thanked the simple old creature politely.
in a polite manner
From this reading So Jurgen thanked the simple old creature politely.
past form of “reach” — reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading And when Jurgen reached home his wife was nowhere to be seen.
deserving regret
From this reading Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!
a recompense for worthy acts or retribution for wrongdoing
From this reading How I will reward you, to be sure!"
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading And when Jurgen reached home his wife was nowhere to be seen.
having few parts; not complex or complicated or involved
From this reading So Jurgen thanked the simple old creature politely.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading So Jurgen thanked the simple old creature politely.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading How I will reward you, to be sure!"
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading No matter, Jurgen, the morning is brighter than the evening.
past form of “thank” — express gratitude or show appreciation to
From this reading So Jurgen thanked the simple old creature politely.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading No matter, Jurgen, the morning is brighter than the evening.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Dear me, this is a most regrettable instance of mismanagement!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading How I will reward you, to be sure!"
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading And when Jurgen reached home his wife was nowhere to be seen.
at the time that
From this reading And when Jurgen reached home his wife was nowhere to be seen.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading And when Jurgen reached home his wife was nowhere to be seen.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading How I will reward you, to be sure!"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading How I will reward you, to be sure!"
Chapter 1 of Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice by James Branch Cabell holds 386 sentences, grouped into 78 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 386 sentences of Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice, unabridged, divided into 78 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice by James Branch Cabell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 386 sentences, grouped into 78 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 78 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 78 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 Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice by James Branch Cabell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5097 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #8771 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #8771, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 424 minutes of reading across 1020 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice 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 Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
