Chapter 16 of Madame Bovary is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVI
Chapter 16 of Madame Bovary is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château. She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord. A large straight staircase led up to the corridor. Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping. It was Rodolphe.
Chapter 16 of Madame Bovary is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/36 · 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.
go together
From this reading “She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.”
A large French country house or castle, often surrounded by expansive estates and private galleries.
From this reading “Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.”
an enclosed passageway; rooms usually open onto it
From this reading “A large straight staircase led up to the corridor.”
showing lack of emotional involvement
From this reading “Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.”
an area adjacent to farm buildings
From this reading “Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.”
fasten with a latch
From this reading “Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.”
the state of being asleep
From this reading “Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.”
a way of access (upward and downward) consisting of a set of steps
From this reading “A large straight staircase led up to the corridor.”
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 Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
go together
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.
move towards
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
on the far side of; further than
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
a structure that has a roof and walls and stands more or less permanently in one place
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
A large French country house or castle, often surrounded by expansive estates and private galleries.
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
an enclosed passageway; rooms usually open onto it
From this reading A large straight staircase led up to the corridor.
showing lack of emotional involvement
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.
plural of “door” — a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
an area adjacent to farm buildings
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading A large straight staircase led up to the corridor.
fasten with a latch
From this reading Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.
diode such that light emitted at a p-n junction is proportional to the bias current; color depends on the material used
From this reading A large straight staircase led up to the corridor.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
located or moved above the surround or above the normal position
From this reading Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was Rodolphe.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.
cut with a saw
From this reading Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
the state of being asleep
From this reading Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.
a way of access (upward and downward) consisting of a set of steps
From this reading A large straight staircase led up to the corridor.
successive (without a break)
From this reading A large straight staircase led up to the corridor.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Emma raised the latch of a door, and suddenly at the end of the room she saw a man sleeping.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
in or at that place or location
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading A large straight staircase led up to the corridor.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading A large straight staircase led up to the corridor.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Beyond the farmyard there was a detached building that she thought must be the château.
having great (or a certain) extent from one side to the other
From this reading She entered--it was if the doors at her approach had opened wide of their own accord.
Chapter 16 of Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert holds 180 sentences, grouped into 36 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 16 holds 180 sentences of Madame Bovary, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 180 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 16 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 Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6429 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2413 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2413, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 535 minutes of reading across 1286 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Madame Bovary section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 36 chapters of Madame Bovary 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 Madame Bovary, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
