Chapter 4 of Little Busybodies is here in full — 485 sentences across 97 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Little Busybodies is here in full — 485 sentences across 97 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all! We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more. Oho! somebody else made a home here. Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops." The children leaned forward, looking eagerly.
Chapter 4 of Little Busybodies is here in full — 485 sentences across 97 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/97 · 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.
plural of “chop” — the irregular motion of waves (usually caused by wind blowing in a direction opposite to the tide)
From this reading “Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."”
past form of “lean” — to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading “The children leaned forward, looking eagerly.”
an unsuccessful ending to a struggle or contest
From this reading “Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."”
flesh of either quail or grouse
From this reading “"Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all!”
scrape with the paws
From this reading “Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."”
hit with a missile from a weapon
From this reading “We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.”
a person, without saying who
From this reading “Oho! somebody else made a home here.”
shedding tears
From this reading “Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."”
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 We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.
in actual fact
From this reading We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.
(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 "Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all!
have
From this reading Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."
warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrates characterized by feathers and forelimbs modified as wings
From this reading We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading The children leaned forward, looking eagerly.
plural of “chop” — the irregular motion of waves (usually caused by wind blowing in a direction opposite to the tide)
From this reading Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."
with eagerness; in an eager manner
From this reading The children leaned forward, looking eagerly.
being one more than seven
From this reading "Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Oho! somebody else made a home here.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading "Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all!
past form of “exclaim” — utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy
From this reading "Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all!
any substance that can be metabolized by an animal to give energy and build tissue
From this reading We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all!
at or to or toward the front
From this reading The children leaned forward, looking eagerly.
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all!
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading Oho! somebody else made a home here.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."
where you live at a particular time
From this reading Oho! somebody else made a home here.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."
past form of “lean” — to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading The children leaned forward, looking eagerly.
an unsuccessful ending to a struggle or contest
From this reading Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading The children leaned forward, looking eagerly.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Oho! somebody else made a home here.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.
a condition requiring relief
From this reading We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Oho! somebody else made a home here.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."
and nothing more
From this reading We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."
flesh of either quail or grouse
From this reading "Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all!
scrape with the paws
From this reading Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading "Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all!
hit with a missile from a weapon
From this reading We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.
a person, without saying who
From this reading Oho! somebody else made a home here.
shedding tears
From this reading Old Paw Bear has been tearing it out and licking his chops."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The children leaned forward, looking eagerly.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Eight partridge," he exclaimed, "and quite enough for us all!
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading We shoot only what we actually need for food, not a bird more.
Chapter 4 of Little Busybodies by Jeannette Augustus Marks holds 485 sentences, grouped into 97 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 4 holds 485 sentences of Little Busybodies, unabridged, divided into 97 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Little Busybodies by Jeannette Augustus Marks exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 485 sentences, grouped into 97 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 97 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 97 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 4 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 Little Busybodies by Jeannette Augustus Marks on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1887 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21948 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21948, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 157 minutes of reading across 378 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Little Busybodies section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of Little Busybodies 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 Little Busybodies, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
