Chapter 21 of Mary Seaham: A Novel. Volume 2 of 3 is here in full — 59 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXI
Chapter 21 of Mary Seaham: A Novel. Volume 2 of 3 is here in full — 59 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind. My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind. Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest! Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest. BYRON.
Chapter 21 of Mary Seaham: A Novel. Volume 2 of 3 is here in full — 59 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/11 · 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.
separate or cut with a tool, such as a sharp instrument
From this reading “Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.”
run away quickly
From this reading “Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.”
a narrow secluded valley (in the mountains)
From this reading “My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.”
plural of “haunt” — a frequently visited place
From this reading “Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.”
third-person singular of “require” — require as useful, just, or proper
From this reading “My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.”
avoid and stay away from deliberately; stay clear of
From this reading “Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.”
a sweater or jersey with a high close-fitting collar
From this reading “Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!”
An arched structure of masonry forming a ceiling, or a secure subterranean storage room.
From this reading “Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.”
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 “Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.”
In this reading “Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.”
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 My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.
have
From this reading Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!
the front of the trunk from the neck to the abdomen
From this reading My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
English romantic poet notorious for his rebellious and unconventional lifestyle (1788-1824)
From this reading BYRON.
separate or cut with a tool, such as a sharp instrument
From this reading Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.
(of fabrics and paper) grown dark in color over time
From this reading My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
having made preparations
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
run away quickly
From this reading Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.
travel through the air; be airborne
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!
a narrow secluded valley (in the mountains)
From this reading My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
a state of partial or total darkness
From this reading My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
the emotion of intense dislike; a feeling of dislike so strong that it demands action
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
plural of “haunt” — a frequently visited place
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
any place of complete bliss and delight and peace
From this reading Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
all of the living human inhabitants of the earth
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!
the force of workers available
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
a structure in which animals lay eggs or give birth to their young
From this reading Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!
third-person singular of “require” — require as useful, just, or proper
From this reading My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
not move; be in a resting position
From this reading Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.
try to get or reach
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
avoid and stay away from deliberately; stay clear of
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
be agreeable or acceptable to
From this reading My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
showing a brooding ill humor
From this reading My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
a sweater or jersey with a high close-fitting collar
From this reading Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!
An arched structure of masonry forming a ceiling, or a secure subterranean storage room.
From this reading Then would I cleave the vault of Heaven, To flee away, and be at rest.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!
belonging to which person
From this reading My breast requires the sullen glen, Whose gloom may suit a darkened mind.
a means of flight or ascent
From this reading Oh that to me the wings were given Which bear the turtle to her nest!
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Fain would I fly the haunts of men; I seek to shun, not hate mankind.
Chapter 21 of Mary Seaham: A Novel. Volume 2 of 3 by Mrs. (Elizabeth Caroline) Grey holds 59 sentences, grouped into 12 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 21 holds 59 sentences of Mary Seaham: A Novel. Volume 2 of 3, unabridged, divided into 12 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 21 of Mary Seaham: A Novel. Volume 2 of 3 by Mrs. (Elizabeth Caroline) Grey exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 59 sentences, grouped into 12 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 12 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 12 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 21 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 Seaham: A Novel. Volume 2 of 3 by Mrs. (Elizabeth Caroline) Grey on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1681 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #40406 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #40406, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 140 minutes of reading across 337 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Mary Seaham: A Novel. Volume 2 of 3 section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of Mary Seaham: A Novel. Volume 2 of 3 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 Seaham: A Novel. Volume 2 of 3, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
