Chapter 4 of Mary's Rainbow is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Mary's Rainbow is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MARYVALE. Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her. "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene." "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase. Neither have I," laughed the young girl.
Chapter 4 of Mary's Rainbow is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/33 · 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.
eat an early morning meal
From this reading “"Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.”
rub with a brush, or as if with a brush
From this reading “"Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.”
straighten with a comb
From this reading “"Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.”
dressed or clothed especially in fine attire; often used in combination
From this reading “Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.”
the sixth day of the week; the fifth working day
From this reading “Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.”
(genetics) a segment of DNA that is involved in producing a polypeptide chain; it can include regions preceding and following the coding DNA as well as introns between the exons; it is considered a unit of heredity
From this reading “Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.”
a portable rectangular container for carrying clothes
From this reading “"Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.”
be awake, be alert, be there
From this reading “Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
earlier than; in front of
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
eat an early morning meal
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
rub with a brush, or as if with a brush
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
straighten with a comb
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
dressed or clothed especially in fine attire; often used in combination
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
take in solid food
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
the sixth day of the week; the fifth working day
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
(genetics) a segment of DNA that is involved in producing a polypeptide chain; it can include regions preceding and following the coding DNA as well as introns between the exons; it is considered a unit of heredity
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
a young female
From this reading Neither have I," laughed the young girl.
consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading Neither have I," laughed the young girl.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “as” or “too” or “so” or “that”; amounting to a large but indefinite number
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
the mother of Jesus; Christians refer to her as the Virgin Mary; she is especially honored by Roman Catholics
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading MARYVALE.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
not one and not the other of two
From this reading Neither have I," laughed the young girl.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
a portable rectangular container for carrying clothes
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Neither have I," laughed the young girl.
in or at that place or location
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
be awake, be alert, be there
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
at the time that
From this reading Friday morning, Mary was half dressed when Gene came to wake her.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "There are so many things that I must do before it is time to start, you know, Gene."
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading Neither have I," laughed the young girl.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Why, Mary, you have nothing to do but to eat your breakfast and put your comb and brush in your suitcase.
Chapter 4 of Mary's Rainbow by Clementia holds 169 sentences, grouped into 34 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 4 holds 169 sentences of Mary's Rainbow, unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Mary's Rainbow by Clementia exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 169 sentences, grouped into 34 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 34 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 34 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 4 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's Rainbow by Clementia on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1998 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #20193 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #20193, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 166 minutes of reading across 400 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Mary's Rainbow section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 15 chapters of Mary's Rainbow 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's Rainbow, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
