Chapter 36 of Man and Wife is here in full — 425 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXVI
Chapter 36 of Man and Wife is here in full — 425 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother. Julius handed it back again. “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that. Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.” “It will do for me.
Chapter 36 of Man and Wife is here in full — 425 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/85 · 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.
plural of “action” — something done (usually as opposed to something said)
From this reading “Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.””
a system of timekeeping that defines the beginning and length and divisions of the year
From this reading “He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.”
foster the growth of
From this reading ““You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.”
a former prison in London notorious for its unsanitary conditions and burnt down in riots in 1780; a new prison was built on the same spot but was torn down in 1902
From this reading “He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.”
-ing form of “produce” — bring forth or yield
From this reading “He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.”
set down or registered in a permanent form especially on film or tape for reproduction
From this reading “Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.””
morally reprehensible
From this reading “Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.””
plural of “volume” — the amount of 3-dimensional space occupied by an object
From this reading “He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.”
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 “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
plural of “action” — something done (usually as opposed to something said)
From this reading Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.”
anew
From this reading Julius handed it back again.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Julius handed it back again.
a written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)
From this reading “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
a system of timekeeping that defines the beginning and length and divisions of the year
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
foster the growth of
From this reading “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “It will do for me.
an Indo-European language belonging to the West Germanic branch; the official language of Britain and the United States and most of the commonwealth countries
From this reading Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.”
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.”
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “It will do for me.
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.”
having or involving the use of hands
From this reading Julius handed it back again.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Julius handed it back again.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Julius handed it back again.
engage in
From this reading Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.”
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “It will do for me.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
a former prison in London notorious for its unsanitary conditions and burnt down in riots in 1780; a new prison was built on the same spot but was torn down in 1902
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
-ing form of “produce” — bring forth or yield
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
the cognitive process of understanding a written linguistic message
From this reading Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.”
set down or registered in a permanent form especially on film or tape for reproduction
From this reading Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
a general conscious awareness
From this reading Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
morally reprehensible
From this reading Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.”
plural of “volume” — the amount of 3-dimensional space occupied by an object
From this reading He turned to the side-table, and, producing the volumes of the Newgate Calendar, gave one to his brother.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading “It will do for me.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading Vile actions recorded in vile English, make vile reading, Geoffrey, in every sense of the word.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You won’t cultivate your mind,” he said, “with such a book as that.
Chapter 36 of Man and Wife by Wilkie Collins holds 425 sentences, grouped into 85 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 36 holds 425 sentences of Man and Wife, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 36 of Man and Wife by Wilkie Collins exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 425 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 36 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, a public-domain edition. 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.
