King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table

Chapter XIV

Chapter 14 of King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table is here in full — 31 sentences across 7 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Sir Thomas Malory & Roger Lancelyn Green • Curated US English Learning Edition

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English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

THE KNIGHT, THE LADY, AND THE FALCON And Sir Launcelot by fortune came to a fair castle, and as he passed by he was ware of a falcon that came flying over his head toward a high elm.

As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

Sir Launcelot saw how the fair falcon hung there, and he was sorry for her.

Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

Narrator

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.

Chapter XIV Reading 1/6

King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table Sir Thomas Malory & Roger Lancelyn Green

Chapter XIV

Chapter 14 of King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table is here in full — 31 sentences across 7 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

THE KNIGHT, THE LADY, AND THE FALCON And Sir Launcelot by fortune came to a fair castle, and as he passed by he was ware of a falcon that came flying over his head toward a high elm. As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs. Sir Launcelot saw how the fair falcon hung there, and he was sorry for her. Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk. I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table

Chapter XIV

Chapter 14 of King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table is here in full — 31 sentences across 7 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/6 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

THE KNIGHT, THE LADY, AND THE FALCON And Sir Launcelot by fortune came to a fair castle, and as he passed by he was ware of a falcon that came flying over his head toward a high elm.

Line 2

As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

/æz ðə bɜːrd fluː ˈɪntuː ðə triː tuː teɪk hɜːr pɜːrtʃ ðə lɔːŋ laɪnz əˈbaʊt hɜːr fiːt kɑːt ɑːn ə baʊ ənd wen ʃiː wʊd teɪk flaɪt əˈɡen ʃiː hʌŋ fæst baɪ ðə leɡz/

Line 3

Sir Launcelot saw how the fair falcon hung there, and he was sorry for her.

Line 4

Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

Line 5

I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

/aɪ wɑːz ˈhoʊldɪŋ maɪ hɔːk ənd ʃiː slɪpt frʌm miː ənd ɪf maɪ lɔːrd maɪ ˈhʌzbənd noʊz ðæt ʃiː ɪz lɔːst hiː wɪl sleɪ miː/

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.

bough noun US /baʊ/

any of the larger branches of a tree

From this reading “As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.”

elm noun US /elm/

any of various trees of the genus Ulmus: important timber or shade trees

From this reading “THE KNIGHT, THE LADY, AND THE FALCON And Sir Launcelot by fortune came to a fair castle, and as he passed by he was ware of a falcon that came flying over his head toward a high elm.”

falcon noun US /ˈfælkən/

diurnal birds of prey having long pointed powerful wings adapted for swift flight

hawk noun US /hɔːk/

diurnal bird of prey typically having short rounded wings and a long tail

From this reading “Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.”

knights noun US /naɪts/

plural of “knight” — originally a person of noble birth trained to arms and chivalry; today in Great Britain a person honored by the sovereign for personal merit

From this reading “Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.”

perch noun US /pɜːrtʃ/

support consisting of a branch or rod that serves as a resting place (especially for a bird)

From this reading “As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.”

slay verb US /sleɪ/

kill intentionally and with premeditation

From this reading “I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."”

ware noun US /wer/

articles of the same kind or material; usually used in combination: “silverware”, “software”

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

cried aloud verb + particle counted as “cry aloud”

In this reading “Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.”

long lines adjective + noun counted as “long line”

In this reading “As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.”

flew into verb + particle counted as “fly into”

In this reading “As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.”

slipped from verb + particle counted as “slip from”

In this reading “I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."”

came flying verb + adjective counted as “come flying”

In this reading “THE KNIGHT, THE LADY, AND THE FALCON And Sir Launcelot by fortune came to a fair castle, and as he passed by he was ware of a falcon that came flying over his head toward a high elm.”

passed by verb + particle counted as “pass by”

move past

All words in this reading · 82

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 THE KNIGHT, THE LADY, AND THE FALCON And Sir Launcelot by fortune came to a fair castle, and as he passed by he was ware of a falcon that came flying over his head toward a high elm.

aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/

on the subject of; concerning

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

againadverbUS /əˈɡen/

anew

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

aloudadverbUS /əˈlaʊd/

using the voice; not silently

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

ANDconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

artauxiliary verbUS /ɑːrt/

an old form of “are”, used with “thou”

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

birdnounUS /bɜːrd/

warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrates characterized by feathers and forelimbs modified as wings

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

boughnounUS /baʊ/

any of the larger branches of a tree

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

cameverbUS /keɪm/

inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

castlenounUS /ˈkæsəl/

a large and stately mansion

caughtverbUS /kɑːt/

inflected form of “catch” — discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

criedverbUS /kraɪd/

inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

elmnounUS /elm/

any of various trees of the genus Ulmus: important timber or shade trees

fairadjectiveUS /fer/

free from favoritism or self-interest or bias or deception; conforming with established standards or rules

FALCONnounUS /ˈfælkən/

diurnal birds of prey having long pointed powerful wings adapted for swift flight

fastadverbUS /fæst/

quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form)

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

feetnounUS /fiːt/

plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

flewverbUS /fluː/

inflected form of “fly” — travel through the air; be airborne

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

flightnounUS /flaɪt/

a formation of aircraft in flight

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

flowernounUS /ˈflaʊər/

a plant cultivated for its blooms or blossoms

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

flyingadjectiveUS /ˈflaɪɪŋ/

moving swiftly

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading Sir Launcelot saw how the fair falcon hung there, and he was sorry for her.

fortunenounUS /ˈfɔːrtʃən/

an unknown and unpredictable phenomenon that causes an event to result one way rather than another

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

getverbUS /ɡet/

come into the possession of something concrete or abstract

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

hawknounUS /hɔːk/

diurnal bird of prey typically having short rounded wings and a long tail

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

headnounUS /hed/

the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains

helpverbUS /help/

give help or assistance; be of service

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

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

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

highadjectiveUS /haɪ/

greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

holdingnounUS /ˈhoʊldɪŋ/

the act of retaining something

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

how

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

From this reading Sir Launcelot saw how the fair falcon hung there, and he was sorry for her.

hungverbUS /hʌŋ/

inflected form of “hang” — be suspended or hanging

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

husbandnounUS /ˈhʌzbənd/

a married man; a woman's partner in marriage

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

IpronounUS /aɪ/

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

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

ifconjunctionUS /ɪf/

on condition that; in the event that

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

isauxiliary verbUS /ɪz/

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

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

KNIGHTnounUS /naɪt/

originally a person of noble birth trained to arms and chivalry; today in Great Britain a person honored by the sovereign for personal merit

knightsnounUS /naɪts/

plural of “knight” — originally a person of noble birth trained to arms and chivalry; today in Great Britain a person honored by the sovereign for personal merit

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

knowsnounUS /noʊz/

plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

LADYnounUS /ˈleɪdi/

a polite name for any woman

Launcelot

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

legsnounUS /leɡz/

staying power

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

linesnounUS /laɪnz/

plural of “line” — a formation of people or things one beside another

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

longadjectiveUS /lɔːŋ/

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 As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

lordnounUS /lɔːrd/

terms referring to the Judeo-Christian God

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

lostadjectiveUS /lɔːst/

no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

mepronounUS /miː/

the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

MeanwhileadverbUS /ˈmiːnwaɪl/

at the same time but in another place

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

OnounUS /oʊ/

a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

outadjectiveUS /aʊt/

not allowed to continue to bat or run

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

overprepositionUS /ˈoʊvər/

above and across; more than

passedverbUS /pæst/

past form of “pass” — go across or through

perchnounUS /pɜːrtʃ/

support consisting of a branch or rod that serves as a resting place (especially for a bird)

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

sawverbUS /sɔː/

cut with a saw

From this reading Sir Launcelot saw how the fair falcon hung there, and he was sorry for her.

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

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

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

SirnounUS /sɜːr/

term of address for a man

slayverbUS /sleɪ/

kill intentionally and with premeditation

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

slippedverbUS /slɪpt/

inflected form of “slip” — move stealthily

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

sorryadjectiveUS /ˈsɑːri/

feeling or expressing regret or sorrow or a sense of loss over something done or undone

From this reading Sir Launcelot saw how the fair falcon hung there, and he was sorry for her.

takeverbUS /teɪk/

carry out

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

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

thereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading Sir Launcelot saw how the fair falcon hung there, and he was sorry for her.

thoupronounUS /ðaʊ/

an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person

From this reading Meanwhile came a lady out of the castle and cried aloud, "O Launcelot, Launcelot, as thou art the flower of all knights, help me to get my hawk.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

towardprepositionUS /təˈwɔːrd/

in the direction of

treenounUS /triː/

a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

warenounUS /wer/

articles of the same kind or material; usually used in combination: “silverware”, “software”

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

willmodal verbUS /wɪl/

used to talk about the future, or about willingness

From this reading I was holding my hawk and she slipped from me, and if my lord my husband knows that she is lost he will slay me."

wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

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

From this reading As the bird flew into the tree to take her perch, the long lines about her feet caught on a bough, and when she would take flight again she hung fast by the legs.

Chapter 14 of King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table by Sir Thomas Malory & Roger Lancelyn Green holds 31 sentences, grouped into 7 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 14 of King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table contain?

Chapter 14 holds 31 sentences of King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table, unabridged, divided into 7 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 14 of King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table by Sir Thomas Malory & Roger Lancelyn Green exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 31 sentences, grouped into 7 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.

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Work through the 7 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 7 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.

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Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 14 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.

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Chapter XIV

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