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Madelon: A Novel
Madelon: A Novel

Chapter XVII

Cover illustration for Madelon: A Novel
Context Illustration Reading 1/19 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.
With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.
The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.
"She's goin' to marry Lot to pay off Burr," they all agreed.
"She'll get all the money."
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Madelon: A Novel

Chapter XVII

Reading 1/19 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.
Line 2
With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.
Line 3
The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.
Line 4
"She's goin' to marry Lot to pay off Burr," they all agreed.
Line 5
"She'll get all the money."

Learner Dictionary

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.

Before preposition US /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading “However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.”

Born noun US /born/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.”

Exchanged noun US /ˈexchanged/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.”

Found noun US /found/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.”

However adverb US /ˌhaʊˈevər/

used to add a contrasting statement

From this reading “However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.”

Mind noun US /mind/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.”

Nodded noun US /nodded/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.”

One pronoun US /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading “However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.”

Scarce adjective US /skɛrs/

hard to find or in short supply

From this reading “However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.”

Whether conjunction US /ˈweðər/

used to introduce two or more possibilities

From this reading “However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.”

All words in this reading · 80

Every word is available to listen to. Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

actions

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

affirmative

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.

agape

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

agreed

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "She's goin' to marry Lot to pay off Burr," they all agreed.

all

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

astutely

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.

Bean

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

big

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

bornnounUS /born/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

Burr

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "She's goin' to marry Lot to pay off Burr," they all agreed.

choice

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

day

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

eachdeterminerUS /iːtʃ/

every one of two or more people or things, taken separately

From this reading The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.

engagement

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

exchangednounUS /ˈexchanged/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

foundnounUS /found/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

gave

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

get

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "She'll get all the money."

goin

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "She's goin' to marry Lot to pay off Burr," they all agreed.

grew

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

grunts

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

HoweveradverbUS /ˌhaʊˈevər/

used to add a contrasting statement

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

human

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

involuntary

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

knowledge

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

leads

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

Lot

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "She's goin' to marry Lot to pay off Burr," they all agreed.

Lot's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

Madelon's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

many

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

Margaret

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

marry

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "She's goin' to marry Lot to pay off Burr," they all agreed.

men

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.

mindnounUS /mind/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

money

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "She'll get all the money."

motive

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

mouth

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

noddednounUS /nodded/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

off

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "She's goin' to marry Lot to pay off Burr," they all agreed.

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/

used to join alternatives or possibilities

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

other

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.

pay

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "She's goin' to marry Lot to pay off Burr," they all agreed.

reason

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

scarceadjectiveUS /skɛrs/

hard to find or in short supply

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

self-knowledge

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

selfish

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

She'll

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "She'll get all the money."

She's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "She's goin' to marry Lot to pay off Burr," they all agreed.

shrewd

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.

suspect

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

tale

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

tendency

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading "She's goin' to marry Lot to pay off Burr," they all agreed.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

too

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

unhesitatingly

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

untoward

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

vented

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

village

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

whetherconjunctionUS /ˈweðər/

used to introduce two or more possibilities

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading With that tendency of the human mind born of involuntary self-knowledge which leads it to suspect a selfish motive in all untoward actions, many gave unhesitatingly a reason for Madelon's choice.

whole

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading However the tale of Madelon's and Lot's engagement had found mouth--whether Margaret Bean had vented her knowledge when it grew too big for her or not--it was scarce one day before the whole village was agape with it.

women

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The women nodded astutely at each other, and the men exchanged shrewd affirmative grunts.