Chapter 8 of Leaves of Grass is here in full — 60 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Leaves of Grass is here in full — 60 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Crossing Brooklyn Ferry Flood-tide below me! I see you face to face! Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face. Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
Chapter 8 of Leaves of Grass is here in full — 60 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/12 · 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.
dressed or clothed especially in fine attire; often used in combination
From this reading “Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!”
a borough of New York City
From this reading “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry”
plural of “cloud” — any collection of particles (e.g., smoke or dust) or gases that is visible
From this reading “Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.”
plural of “costume” — the attire worn in a play or at a fancy dress ball
From this reading “Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!”
traveling across
From this reading “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry”
plural of “crowd” — a large number of things or people considered together
From this reading “Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!”
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading “Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!”
transport from one place to another
From this reading “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry”
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.
in addition
From this reading Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
dressed or clothed especially in fine attire; often used in combination
From this reading Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
at or to a lower level than something
From this reading Flood-tide below me!
a borough of New York City
From this reading Crossing Brooklyn Ferry
plural of “cloud” — any collection of particles (e.g., smoke or dust) or gases that is visible
From this reading Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.
plural of “costume” — the attire worn in a play or at a fancy dress ball
From this reading Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
traveling across
From this reading Crossing Brooklyn Ferry
plural of “crowd” — a large number of things or people considered together
From this reading Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading I see you face to face!
transport from one place to another
From this reading Crossing Brooklyn Ferry
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Flood-tide below me!
consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity
From this reading Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.
greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I see you face to face!
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Flood-tide below me!
the force of workers available
From this reading Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading I see you face to face!
the star that is the source of light and heat for the planets in the solar system
From this reading Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.
in or at that place or location
From this reading Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I see you face to face!
occurring or encountered or experienced or observed frequently or in accordance with regular practice or procedure
From this reading Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
the countries of (originally) Europe and (now including) North America and South America
From this reading Clouds of the west--sun there half an hour high--I see you also face to face.
plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I see you face to face!
Chapter 8 of Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman holds 60 sentences, grouped into 12 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.
Chapter 8 holds 60 sentences of Leaves of Grass, unabridged, divided into 12 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 60 sentences, grouped into 12 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 12 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 12 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 8 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 Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4156 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1322 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1322, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 346 minutes of reading across 832 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Leaves of Grass section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 34 chapters of Leaves of Grass 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 Leaves of Grass, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
