Chapter 40 of Marguerite de Valois is here in full — 381 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XL
Chapter 40 of Marguerite de Valois is here in full — 381 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE KING IS DEAD! LONG LIVE THE KING! A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room. As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François. Henry was standing at the head of Charles's bed.
Chapter 40 of Marguerite de Valois is here in full — 381 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/76 · 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.
possessive form of “charles” — King of France from 1560 to 1574 whose reign was dominated by his mother Catherine de Medicis (1550-1574)
From this reading “A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.”
an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight)
From this reading “A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.”
a unit of inductance in which an induced electromotive force of one volt is produced when the current is varied at the rate of one ampere per second
From this reading “As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.”
plural of “moment” — a particular point in time
From this reading “A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.”
inflected form of “overhear” — hear, usually without the knowledge of the speakers
From this reading “As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.”
very light colored; highly diluted with white
From this reading “A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.”
a feeling of intense anger
From this reading “A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.”
a shaky motion
From this reading “A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
In this reading “As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.”
In this reading “A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.”
In this reading “A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.”
In this reading “A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.”
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 A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Henry was standing at the head of Charles's bed.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading Henry was standing at the head of Charles's bed.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
possessive form of “charles” — King of France from 1560 to 1574 whose reign was dominated by his mother Catherine de Medicis (1550-1574)
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading THE KING IS DEAD!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
all things; all of a situation
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight)
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading Henry was standing at the head of Charles's bed.
a unit of inductance in which an induced electromotive force of one volt is produced when the current is varied at the rate of one ampere per second
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading THE KING IS DEAD!
a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading THE KING IS DEAD!
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
be an inhabitant of or reside in
From this reading LONG LIVE THE KING!
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading LONG LIVE THE KING!
plural of “moment” — a particular point in time
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Henry was standing at the head of Charles's bed.
inflected form of “overhear” — hear, usually without the knowledge of the speakers
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
very light colored; highly diluted with white
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
a feeling of intense anger
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
having a supporting base
From this reading Henry was standing at the head of Charles's bed.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE KING IS DEAD!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
a shaky motion
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Henry was standing at the head of Charles's bed.
in the company of; together with
From this reading A few moments later Catharine and the Duc d'Alençon, pale with fright and trembling with rage, entered Charles's room.
the words that are spoken
From this reading As Henry had conjectured, Catharine had overheard everything and in a few words had told all to François.
Chapter 40 of Marguerite de Valois by Alexandre Dumas holds 381 sentences, grouped into 77 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 40 holds 381 sentences of Marguerite de Valois, unabridged, divided into 77 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 40 of Marguerite de Valois by Alexandre Dumas exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 381 sentences, grouped into 77 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 77 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 77 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 40 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 Marguerite de Valois by Alexandre Dumas on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 12802 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #33609 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #33609, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2561 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Marguerite de Valois section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Marguerite de Valois 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 Marguerite de Valois, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
