Chapter 1 of Legends and Lyrics. Part 1 is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Legends and Lyrics. Part 1 is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
TO MATILDA M. HAYS. "Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous. Cold and lifeless, because they do not represent our life. The only gift is a portion of thyself. Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
Chapter 1 of Legends and Lyrics. Part 1 is here in full — 104 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/20 · 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.
a variable color averaging a deep pink
From this reading “Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.”
possessive form of “emerson” — United States writer and leading exponent of transcendentalism (1803-1882)
From this reading “Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.”
plural of “essay” — an analytic or interpretive literary composition
From this reading “Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.”
art highly prized for its beauty or perfection
From this reading “Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.”
United States lawyer and politician who formulated a production code that prescribed the moral content of United States films from 1930 to 1966 (1879-1954)
From this reading “TO MATILDA M. HAYS.”
deprived of life; no longer living
From this reading “Cold and lifeless, because they do not represent our life.”
laborer who works in a mine
From this reading “Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.”
plural of “token” — an individual instance of a type of symbol
From this reading “"Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous.”
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 The only gift is a portion of thyself.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Cold and lifeless, because they do not represent our life.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous.
(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering
From this reading "Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous.
for the reason that
From this reading Cold and lifeless, because they do not represent our life.
having a low or inadequate temperature or feeling a sensation of coldness or having been made cold by e.g. ice or refrigeration
From this reading Cold and lifeless, because they do not represent our life.
a variable color averaging a deep pink
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
tall annual cereal grass bearing kernels on large ears: widely cultivated in America in many varieties; the principal cereal in Mexico and Central and South America since pre-Columbian times
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading Cold and lifeless, because they do not represent our life.
possessive form of “emerson” — United States writer and leading exponent of transcendentalism (1803-1882)
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
plural of “essay” — an analytic or interpretive literary composition
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
a person who operates a farm
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous.
art highly prized for its beauty or perfection
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
something acquired without compensation
From this reading The only gift is a portion of thyself.
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
United States lawyer and politician who formulated a production code that prescribed the moral content of United States films from 1930 to 1966 (1879-1954)
From this reading TO MATILDA M. HAYS.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The only gift is a portion of thyself.
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Cold and lifeless, because they do not represent our life.
deprived of life; no longer living
From this reading Cold and lifeless, because they do not represent our life.
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading "Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading TO MATILDA M. HAYS.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading TO MATILDA M. HAYS.
laborer who works in a mine
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
used to form the superlative
From this reading "Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Cold and lifeless, because they do not represent our life.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous.
and nothing more
From this reading The only gift is a portion of thyself.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading "Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous.
an artist who paints
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading "Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous.
a visual representation (of an object or scene or person or abstraction) produced on a surface
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
a composition written in metrical feet forming rhythmical lines
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
a writer of poems (the term is usually reserved for writers of good poetry)
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading The only gift is a portion of thyself.
take the place of or be parallel or equivalent to
From this reading Cold and lifeless, because they do not represent our life.
any member of a ship's crew
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
plural of “shell” — ammunition consisting of a cylindrical metal casing containing an explosive charge and a projectile; fired from a large gun
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous.
for that reason; as a result
From this reading Therefore let the farmer give his corn; the miner, a gem; the sailor, coral and shells; the painter, his picture; and the poet, his poem."--Emerson's Essays.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Cold and lifeless, because they do not represent our life.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The only gift is a portion of thyself.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading TO MATILDA M. HAYS.
plural of “token” — an individual instance of a type of symbol
From this reading "Our tokens of love are for the most part barbarous.
Chapter 1 of Legends and Lyrics. Part 1 by Adelaide Anne Procter holds 104 sentences, grouped into 21 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 1 holds 104 sentences of Legends and Lyrics. Part 1, unabridged, divided into 21 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Legends and Lyrics. Part 1 by Adelaide Anne Procter exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 104 sentences, grouped into 21 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 21 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 21 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.
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Yes. All 1261 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2303 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2303, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 105 minutes of reading across 253 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Choose one of the 13 chapters of Legends and Lyrics. Part 1 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 Legends and Lyrics. Part 1, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
