Chapter 1 of Lillian's vow is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Lillian's vow is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
POOR LILLIAN! “Help! Help!” A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down. A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
Chapter 1 of Lillian's vow is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/29 · 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.
(of something seen or heard) clearly defined
From this reading “A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.”
possessive form of “day” — time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
an utterance expressing pain or disapproval
From this reading “A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.”
deep and harsh sounding as if from shouting or illness or emotion
From this reading “A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.”
held in check with difficulty
From this reading “A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.”
(of undissolved particles in a fluid) supported or kept from sinking or falling by buoyancy and without apparent attachment
From this reading “A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.”
for a limited time only; not permanently
From this reading “A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.”
a violent disturbance
From this reading “A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.”
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 “A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.”
In this reading “A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.”
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 A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
in a state of sleep
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
Directly under; in or to a lower position than.
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
a large and densely populated urban area; may include several independent administrative districts
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
rid of obstructions
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
(of something seen or heard) clearly defined
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.
possessive form of “day” — time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
an utterance expressing pain or disapproval
From this reading A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading “Help!
deep and harsh sounding as if from shouting or illness or emotion
From this reading A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading POOR LILLIAN!
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading POOR LILLIAN!
make a loud noise, as of wind, water, or vehicles
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
move hurridly
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
established or decided beyond dispute or doubt
From this reading A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.
the atmosphere and outer space as viewed from the earth
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
held in check with difficulty
From this reading A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.
(of undissolved particles in a fluid) supported or kept from sinking or falling by buoyancy and without apparent attachment
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
for a limited time only; not permanently
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading A hoarse groan, a stifled cry, then silence settled down.
a violent disturbance
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
characteristic of or occurring in winter
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
in the company of; together with
From this reading A clear, crisp wintery night, with the great city lying asleep beneath an opal-tinted sky, the rush and roar of the day’s turmoil temporarily suspended.
Chapter 1 of Lillian's vow by E. Burke, Mrs. Collins holds 148 sentences, grouped into 30 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 148 sentences of Lillian's vow, unabridged, divided into 30 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Lillian's vow by E. Burke, Mrs. Collins exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 148 sentences, grouped into 30 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 30 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 30 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 Lillian's vow by E. Burke, Mrs. Collins on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3328 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #76634 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #76634, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 277 minutes of reading across 666 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Lillian's vow section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 29 chapters of Lillian's vow 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 Lillian's vow, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
