Chapter 4 of Lorraine: A Romance is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Lorraine: A Romance is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Do you care?" he asked, carelessly. "I? Why, no." If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat. "I cabled them two words: 'Accept--provisionally,'" he said.
Chapter 4 of Lorraine: A Romance is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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.
consider or hold as true
From this reading “"I cabled them two words: 'Accept--provisionally,'" he said.”
past form of “cable” — send cables, wires, or telegrams
From this reading “"I cabled them two words: 'Accept--provisionally,'" he said.”
without care or concern
From this reading “"Do you care?" he asked, carelessly.”
past form of “despair” — abandon hope; give up hope; lose heart
From this reading “If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.”
past form of “frown” — look angry or sullen, wrinkle one's forehead, as if to signal disapproval
From this reading “If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.”
possessive form of “jack” — a small worthless amount
From this reading “If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.”
temporarily and conditionally
From this reading “"I cabled them two words: 'Accept--provisionally,'" he said.”
a cold pudding made of layers of sponge cake spread with fruit or jelly; may be decorated with nuts, cream, or chocolate
From this reading “If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.”
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 If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
consider or hold as true
From this reading "I cabled them two words: 'Accept--provisionally,'" he said.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "Do you care?" he asked, carelessly.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
come out better in a competition, race, or conflict
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
past form of “cable” — send cables, wires, or telegrams
From this reading "I cabled them two words: 'Accept--provisionally,'" he said.
the work of providing treatment for or attending to someone or something
From this reading "Do you care?" he asked, carelessly.
without care or concern
From this reading "Do you care?" he asked, carelessly.
past form of “despair” — abandon hope; give up hope; lose heart
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "Do you care?" he asked, carelessly.
past form of “frown” — look angry or sullen, wrinkle one's forehead, as if to signal disapproval
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Do you care?" he asked, carelessly.
the locus of feelings and intuitions
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I?
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
possessive form of “jack” — a small worthless amount
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
not any; not one
From this reading Why, no."
temporarily and conditionally
From this reading "I cabled them two words: 'Accept--provisionally,'" he said.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading "I cabled them two words: 'Accept--provisionally,'" he said.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
a cold pudding made of layers of sponge cake spread with fruit or jelly; may be decorated with nuts, cream, or chocolate
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading "I cabled them two words: 'Accept--provisionally,'" he said.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading Why, no."
the words that are spoken
From this reading "I cabled them two words: 'Accept--provisionally,'" he said.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
an affirmative
From this reading If she had smiled at him and said "Yes," he would have despaired; but she frowned a trifle and said "No," and Jack's heart began to beat.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Do you care?" he asked, carelessly.
Chapter 4 of Lorraine: A Romance by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers holds 396 sentences, grouped into 80 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 396 sentences of Lorraine: A Romance, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Lorraine: A Romance by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 396 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 Lorraine: A Romance by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5393 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #24181 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #24181, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 449 minutes of reading across 1079 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Lorraine: A Romance section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of Lorraine: A Romance 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 Lorraine: A Romance, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
