Chapter 5 of Kittens is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Kittens is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s! Pu-s-s!” It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her. She felt her trust in mankind growing.... And the next time the man called she went nearer still.
Chapter 5 of Kittens is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/78 · 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.
strongly attracted
From this reading “It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.”
greatly pleasing or entertaining
From this reading “It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.”
an illustration that is drawn by hand and published in a book, magazine, or newspaper
From this reading “The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!”
young domestic cat
From this reading “It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.”
all of the living human inhabitants of the earth
From this reading “She felt her trust in mankind growing....”
(comparative of “near” or “close”) within a shorter distance
From this reading “And the next time the man called she went nearer still.”
the process of becoming softer
From this reading “The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!”
plural of “sound” — the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading “It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.”
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.
In this reading “It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.”
In this reading “It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.”
In this reading “And the next time the man called she went nearer still.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
strongly attracted
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
greatly pleasing or entertaining
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
an illustration that is drawn by hand and published in a book, magazine, or newspaper
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
at any time
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading She felt her trust in mankind growing....
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
(biology) the process of an individual organism growing organically; a purely biological unfolding of events involved in an organism changing gradually from a simple to a more complex level
From this reading She felt her trust in mankind growing....
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
characteristic of humanity
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading She felt her trust in mankind growing....
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
young domestic cat
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
all of the living human inhabitants of the earth
From this reading She felt her trust in mankind growing....
an artistic form of auditory communication incorporating instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
(comparative of “near” or “close”) within a shorter distance
From this reading And the next time the man called she went nearer still.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading And the next time the man called she went nearer still.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
recurring again and again
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
the process of becoming softer
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
plural of “sound” — the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
not in physical motion
From this reading And the next time the man called she went nearer still.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
something (as property) held by one party (the trustee) for the benefit of another (the beneficiary)
From this reading She felt her trust in mankind growing....
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was the first time the kitten had ever heard these human sounds--and the new, delightful music charmed her.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading The man called to her as she went; and then, softening his voice and drawing out the sound alluringly, he repeated, “Pu-s-s!
Chapter 5 of Kittens by Svend Fleuron holds 390 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 5 holds 390 sentences of Kittens, unabridged, divided into 78 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Kittens by Svend Fleuron exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 390 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 5 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 Kittens by Svend Fleuron on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1999 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #74356 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #74356, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 166 minutes of reading across 400 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Kittens section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of Kittens 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 Kittens, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
