Chapter 8 of Mary Olivier: a Life is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Mary Olivier: a Life is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net. You were tangled and strangled in a net of unclean wool. They caught you in it when you were a baby a month old. Mamma, Papa and Uncle Victor. You would have to cut and tug and kick and fight your way out.
Chapter 8 of Mary Olivier: a Life is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
a computer network consisting of a worldwide network of computer networks that use the TCP/IP network protocols to facilitate data transmission and exchange
From this reading “Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.”
inflected form of “spin” — revolve quickly and repeatedly around one's own axis
From this reading “Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.”
held in check with difficulty
From this reading “You were tangled and strangled in a net of unclean wool.”
in a confused mass
From this reading “You were tangled and strangled in a net of unclean wool.”
pull hard
From this reading “You would have to cut and tug and kick and fight your way out.”
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading “You were tangled and strangled in a net of unclean wool.”
a fabric made from the hair of sheep
From this reading “Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.”
made or constructed by interlacing threads or strips of material or other elements into a whole
From this reading “Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.”
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 Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading You were tangled and strangled in a net of unclean wool.
a very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk
From this reading They caught you in it when you were a baby a month old.
inflected form of “catch” — discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading They caught you in it when you were a baby a month old.
separate with or as if with an instrument
From this reading You would have to cut and tug and kick and fight your way out.
be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
From this reading You would have to cut and tug and kick and fight your way out.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading You would have to cut and tug and kick and fight your way out.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading They caught you in it when you were a baby a month old.
drive or propel with the foot
From this reading You would have to cut and tug and kick and fight your way out.
informal terms for a mother
From this reading Mamma, Papa and Uncle Victor.
one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading They caught you in it when you were a baby a month old.
a computer network consisting of a worldwide network of computer networks that use the TCP/IP network protocols to facilitate data transmission and exchange
From this reading Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading You were tangled and strangled in a net of unclean wool.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading They caught you in it when you were a baby a month old.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading Mamma, Papa and Uncle Victor.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.
inflected form of “spin” — revolve quickly and repeatedly around one's own axis
From this reading Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.
held in check with difficulty
From this reading You were tangled and strangled in a net of unclean wool.
in a confused mass
From this reading You were tangled and strangled in a net of unclean wool.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They caught you in it when you were a baby a month old.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading You would have to cut and tug and kick and fight your way out.
pull hard
From this reading You would have to cut and tug and kick and fight your way out.
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading Mamma, Papa and Uncle Victor.
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading You were tangled and strangled in a net of unclean wool.
a combatant who is able to defeat rivals
From this reading Mamma, Papa and Uncle Victor.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading You would have to cut and tug and kick and fight your way out.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading You were tangled and strangled in a net of unclean wool.
at the time that
From this reading They caught you in it when you were a baby a month old.
a fabric made from the hair of sheep
From this reading Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading You would have to cut and tug and kick and fight your way out.
an injury to living tissue (especially an injury involving a cut or break in the skin)
From this reading Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.
made or constructed by interlacing threads or strips of material or other elements into a whole
From this reading Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Wool, spun out, wound round you, woven in a net.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You would have to cut and tug and kick and fight your way out.
Chapter 8 of Mary Olivier: a Life by May Sinclair holds 410 sentences, grouped into 82 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 410 sentences of Mary Olivier: a Life, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Mary Olivier: a Life by May Sinclair exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 410 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 Mary Olivier: a Life by May Sinclair on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 11459 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #9366 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #9366, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2292 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Mary Olivier: a Life section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of Mary Olivier: a Life 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 Mary Olivier: a Life, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
