Chapter 39 of Man and Wife is here in full — 421 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXIX
Chapter 39 of Man and Wife is here in full — 421 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.” The surgeon bowed, and went on: “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits. He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last. In his state of health, drinking means literally death.
Chapter 39 of Man and Wife is here in full — 421 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
third-person singular of “admit” — declare to be true or admit the existence or reality or truth of
From this reading “He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.”
of a stringed instrument; sounded by stroking with a bow
From this reading “The surgeon bowed, and went on:”
the trait of being cautious; being attentive to possible danger
From this reading ““The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.”
bound or obligated, as under a pledge to a particular cause, action, or attitude
From this reading “He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.”
the act of consuming liquids
From this reading ““The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.”
a quantity much larger than is needed
From this reading “He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.”
in a literal sense
From this reading “In his state of health, drinking means literally death.”
a physician who specializes in surgery
From this reading “The surgeon bowed, and went on:”
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.
third-person singular of “admit” — declare to be true or admit the existence or reality or truth of
From this reading He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The surgeon bowed, and went on:
earlier than; in front of
From this reading He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.
of a stringed instrument; sounded by stroking with a bow
From this reading The surgeon bowed, and went on:
the trait of being cautious; being attentive to possible danger
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
bound or obligated, as under a pledge to a particular cause, action, or attitude
From this reading He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.
the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading In his state of health, drinking means literally death.
the act of consuming liquids
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
divisible by two
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
a quantity much larger than is needed
From this reading He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
the -ing form of “have”
From this reading He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
a healthy state of wellbeing free from disease
From this reading In his state of health, drinking means literally death.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading In his state of health, drinking means literally death.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
immediately past
From this reading He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.
in a literal sense
From this reading In his state of health, drinking means literally death.
thing or person that acts to produce a particular effect or achieve an end
From this reading In his state of health, drinking means literally death.
a form of address for a man
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading In his state of health, drinking means literally death.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The surgeon bowed, and went on:
possession of controlling influence
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
any plant of the genus Veronica
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
an alcoholic beverage that is distilled rather than fermented
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
the territory occupied by one of the constituent administrative districts of a nation
From this reading In his state of health, drinking means literally death.
a physician who specializes in surgery
From this reading The surgeon bowed, and went on:
express in words
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “The second caution that I have to give you,” he said, “is to keep him from drinking spirits.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The surgeon bowed, and went on:
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading He admits having committed an excess in that way the night before last.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading The surgeon bowed, and went on:
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “It is not even in my power, Mr. Speedwell, to tell you what it is.”
Chapter 39 of Man and Wife by Wilkie Collins holds 421 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 39 holds 421 sentences of Man and Wife, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 39 of Man and Wife by Wilkie Collins exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 421 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 39 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.
