Chapter 1 of London River is here in full — 431 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of London River is here in full — 431 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner. It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there. It does not look like a foreshore. It looks like another of the byways of the capital.
Chapter 1 of London River is here in full — 431 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/86 · 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.
king of Wessex; defeated the Vikings and encouraged writing in English (849-899)
From this reading “Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.”
plural of “begin” — Israeli statesman (born in Russia) who (as prime minister of Israel) negotiated a peace treaty with Anwar Sadat (then the president of Egypt) (1913-1992)
From this reading “It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.”
plural of “byway” — a side road little traveled (as in the countryside)
From this reading “It looks like another of the byways of the capital.”
assets available for use in the production of further assets
From this reading “It looks like another of the byways of the capital.”
in an imperceptible manner or to an imperceptible degree
From this reading “It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.”
a heterogeneous collection of groups united in their opposition to Saddam Hussein's government of Iraq; formed in 1992 it is comprised of Sunni and Shiite Arabs and Kurds who hope to build a new government
From this reading “Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.”
the state of having little or no money and few or no material possessions
From this reading “It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.”
the business of issuing printed matter for sale or distribution
From this reading “Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.”
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 Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
king of Wessex; defeated the Vikings and encouraged writing in English (849-899)
From this reading Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading It looks like another of the byways of the capital.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.
plural of “begin” — Israeli statesman (born in Russia) who (as prime minister of Israel) negotiated a peace treaty with Anwar Sadat (then the president of Egypt) (1913-1992)
From this reading It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.
plural of “byway” — a side road little traveled (as in the countryside)
From this reading It looks like another of the byways of the capital.
assets available for use in the production of further assets
From this reading It looks like another of the byways of the capital.
a large and densely populated urban area; may include several independent administrative districts
From this reading Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
an odorless very poisonous gas that is a product of incomplete combustion of carbon
From this reading Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
a place off to the side of an area
From this reading It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It does not look like a foreshore.
the part of the seashore between the highwater mark and the low-water mark
From this reading It does not look like a foreshore.
a plot of ground where plants are cultivated
From this reading Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
in an imperceptible manner or to an imperceptible degree
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
a heterogeneous collection of groups united in their opposition to Saddam Hussein's government of Iraq; formed in 1992 it is comprised of Sunni and Shiite Arabs and Kurds who hope to build a new government
From this reading Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading It does not look like a foreshore.
has a good chance of being the case or of coming about
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading It does not look like a foreshore.
plural of “look” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading It looks like another of the byways of the capital.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
characteristic of or existing by virtue of geographic origin
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
not any; not one
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
the region of the United States lying to the north of the Mason-Dixon line
From this reading It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It does not look like a foreshore.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.
the state of having little or no money and few or no material possessions
From this reading It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.
the business of issuing printed matter for sale or distribution
From this reading Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It begins on the north side of the City, at Poverty Corner.
in or at that place or location
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
precisely as stated
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading It begins imperceptibly, and very likely is no more than what a native knows is there.
the English royal house (a branch of the Plantagenet line) that reigned from 1461 to 1485; its emblem was a white rose
From this reading Garden City, New York Garden City Publishing Co., Inc Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Chapter 1 of London River by H. M. (Henry Major) Tomlinson holds 431 sentences, grouped into 87 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 431 sentences of London River, unabridged, divided into 87 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of London River by H. M. (Henry Major) Tomlinson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 431 sentences, grouped into 87 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 87 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 87 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 London River by H. M. (Henry Major) Tomlinson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2875 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #15167 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #15167, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 239 minutes of reading across 575 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through London River section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of London River 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 London River, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
