Chapter 17 of Martin Chuzzlewit is here in full — 466 sentences across 94 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of Martin Chuzzlewit is here in full — 466 sentences across 94 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you. You will have to hold a sort of le-vee, sir, while you’re here.’ ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’ ‘I reckon you MUST then,’ said the Captain. ‘Must is not a pleasant word, Captain,’ urged Martin.
Chapter 17 of Martin Chuzzlewit is here in full — 466 sentences across 94 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/93 · 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 “citizen” — a native or naturalized member of a state or other political community
From this reading “‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.”
have in mind as a purpose
From this reading “‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.”
French bishop who is a patron saint of France (died in 397)
From this reading “‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’”
plural of “power” — possession of controlling influence
From this reading “‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’”
a person who is being chased
From this reading “‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.”
expect, believe, or suppose
From this reading “‘I reckon you MUST then,’ said the Captain.”
(often used with “pay”) a formal expression of esteem
From this reading “‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.”
past form of “urge” — force or impel in an indicated direction
From this reading “‘Must is not a pleasant word, Captain,’ urged Martin.”
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 will have to hold a sort of le-vee, sir, while you’re here.’
higher than, or over, something
From this reading ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’
an officer holding a rank below a major but above a lieutenant
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
plural of “citizen” — a native or naturalized member of a state or other political community
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’
a boy or man
From this reading ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading You will have to hold a sort of le-vee, sir, while you’re here.’
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading You will have to hold a sort of le-vee, sir, while you’re here.’
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading You will have to hold a sort of le-vee, sir, while you’re here.’
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’
have in mind as a purpose
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading ‘Must is not a pleasant word, Captain,’ urged Martin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You will have to hold a sort of le-vee, sir, while you’re here.’
French bishop who is a patron saint of France (died in 397)
From this reading ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading ‘I reckon you MUST then,’ said the Captain.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading ‘Must is not a pleasant word, Captain,’ urged Martin.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading You will have to hold a sort of le-vee, sir, while you’re here.’
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
give money, usually in exchange for goods or services
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
affording pleasure; being in harmony with your taste or likings
From this reading ‘Must is not a pleasant word, Captain,’ urged Martin.
plural of “power” — possession of controlling influence
From this reading ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’
a person who is being chased
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
expect, believe, or suppose
From this reading ‘I reckon you MUST then,’ said the Captain.
(often used with “pay”) a formal expression of esteem
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading ‘I reckon you MUST then,’ said the Captain.
term of address for a man
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading You will have to hold a sort of le-vee, sir, while you’re here.’
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading ‘Powers above!’ cried Martin, ‘I couldn’t do that, my good fellow!’
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading ‘I reckon you MUST then,’ said the Captain.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
past form of “urge” — force or impel in an indicated direction
From this reading ‘Must is not a pleasant word, Captain,’ urged Martin.
during the time that
From this reading You will have to hold a sort of le-vee, sir, while you’re here.’
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading You will have to hold a sort of le-vee, sir, while you’re here.’
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading ‘Must is not a pleasant word, Captain,’ urged Martin.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading ‘Our citizens, sir,’ pursued the Captain, ‘intend to pay their respects to you.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You will have to hold a sort of le-vee, sir, while you’re here.’
Chapter 17 of Martin Chuzzlewit by Charles Dickens holds 466 sentences, grouped into 94 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 17 holds 466 sentences of Martin Chuzzlewit, unabridged, divided into 94 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of Martin Chuzzlewit by Charles Dickens exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 466 sentences, grouped into 94 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 94 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 94 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 17 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 Martin Chuzzlewit by Charles Dickens on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 18057 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #968 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #968, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 3612 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Martin Chuzzlewit section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Martin Chuzzlewit 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 Martin Chuzzlewit, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
