Chapter 8 of Man and Wife is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Man and Wife is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“What are you doing there?” Anne asked, sharply. Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile. “Eh! Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.”
Chapter 8 of Man and Wife is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 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.
Queen of England and Scotland and Ireland; daughter if James II and the last of the Stuart monarchs; in 1707 she was the last English ruler to exercise the royal veto over parliament (1665-1714)
From this reading “Anne asked, sharply.”
socially or conventionally correct; refined or virtuous
From this reading “Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.””
a windstorm that lifts up clouds of dust or sand
From this reading “Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.”
suffering from gout
From this reading “Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.”
moderate in type or degree or effect or force; far from extreme
From this reading “Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.”
belonging to or inherited from one's father
From this reading “Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.”
in an aggressive manner
From this reading “Anne asked, sharply.”
past form of “wave” — signal with the hands or nod
From this reading “Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.”
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 Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
Queen of England and Scotland and Ireland; daughter if James II and the last of the Stuart monarchs; in 1707 she was the last English ruler to exercise the royal veto over parliament (1665-1714)
From this reading Anne asked, sharply.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “What are you doing there?”
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading Anne asked, sharply.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
socially or conventionally correct; refined or virtuous
From this reading Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.”
-ing form of “do” — engage in
From this reading “What are you doing there?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.”
a windstorm that lifts up clouds of dust or sand
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Eh!
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.”
in a gradual manner
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
suffering from gout
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
and nothing more
From this reading Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.”
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
moderate in type or degree or effect or force; far from extreme
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
a form of address for a man
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
(often plural) a command given by a superior (e.g., a military or law enforcement officer) that must be obeyed
From this reading Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.”
belonging to or inherited from one's father
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.”
in an aggressive manner
From this reading Anne asked, sharply.
change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
in or at that place or location
From this reading “What are you doing there?”
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.”
moved around an axis or center
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
past form of “wave” — signal with the hands or nod
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “What are you doing there?”
in the company of; together with
From this reading Mr. Bishopriggs turned himself about on his gouty feet; waved his duster gently in the air; and looked at Anne, with a mild, paternal smile.
an old word for “you”, speaking to more than one person
From this reading Am just doostin’ the things; and setin’ the room in decent order for ye.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “What are you doing there?”
Chapter 8 of Man and Wife by Wilkie Collins holds 395 sentences, grouped into 79 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 8 holds 395 sentences of Man and Wife, unabridged, divided into 79 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Man and Wife by Wilkie Collins exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 395 sentences, grouped into 79 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 79 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 79 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 8 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 Man and Wife by Wilkie Collins on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 16495 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1586 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1586, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 3299 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Man and Wife section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Man and Wife 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 Man and Wife, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
