Chapter 1 of Merry Tales is here in full — 445 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Merry Tales is here in full — 445 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
ADA M. SKINNER. E. P. I. From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_. To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read. They will find them in _Merry Tales_.
Chapter 1 of Merry Tales is here in full — 445 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/89 · 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.
an enzyme found in mammals that can catalyze the deamination of adenosine into inosine and ammonia
From this reading “ADA M. SKINNER.”
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading “To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.”
reason by deduction; establish by deduction
From this reading “From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.”
-ing form of “extend” — extend in scope or range or area
From this reading “From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.”
-ing form of “possess” — have as an attribute, knowledge, or skill
From this reading “From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.”
the excess of revenues over outlays in a given period of time (including depreciation and other non-cash expenses)
From this reading “From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.”
mentally healthy; free from mental disorder
From this reading “To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.”
United States actor (1858-1942)
From this reading “ADA M. SKINNER.”
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 “From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.”
In this reading “From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.”
In this reading “From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.”
In this reading “From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.”
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 From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
an enzyme found in mammals that can catalyze the deamination of adenosine into inosine and ammonia
From this reading ADA M. SKINNER.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.
the two together, not just one
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
From this reading To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
reason by deduction; establish by deduction
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
a fat-soluble vitamin that is essential for normal reproduction; an important antioxidant that neutralizes free radicals in the body
From this reading E. P. I.
-ing form of “extend” — extend in scope or range or area
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading They will find them in _Merry Tales_.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading E. P. I.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading They will find them in _Merry Tales_.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.
the psychological result of perception and learning and reasoning
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading ADA M. SKINNER.
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 From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
full of or showing high-spirited merriment
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
a multivalent nonmetallic element of the nitrogen family that occurs commonly in inorganic phosphate rocks and as organic phosphates in all living cells; is highly reactive and occurs in several allotropic forms
From this reading E. P. I.
a fundamental feeling that is hard to define but that people desire to experience
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
-ing form of “possess” — have as an attribute, knowledge, or skill
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
the excess of revenues over outlays in a given period of time (including depreciation and other non-cash expenses)
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
interpret something that is written or printed
From this reading To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.
the cognitive process of understanding a written linguistic message
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
mentally healthy; free from mental disorder
From this reading To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.
United States actor (1858-1942)
From this reading ADA M. SKINNER.
express in speech
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
plural of “story” — a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.
having or denoting the characteristic taste of sugar
From this reading To keep children sane and sweet they must be given bright and cheery stories to read.
plural of “tale” — a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading They will find them in _Merry Tales_.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
hope for; have a wish
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
a late time of life
From this reading From a knowledge and love of children both extending through many years, I wish to speak of the pleasure and profit they will derive from reading and possessing _Merry Tales_.
Chapter 1 of Merry Tales by Eleanor L. (Eleanor Louise) Skinner holds 445 sentences, grouped into 89 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 1 holds 445 sentences of Merry Tales, unabridged, divided into 89 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Merry Tales by Eleanor L. (Eleanor Louise) Skinner exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 445 sentences, grouped into 89 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 89 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 89 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 1 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 Merry Tales by Eleanor L. (Eleanor Louise) Skinner on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2262 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #53766 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #53766, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 188 minutes of reading across 453 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Merry Tales section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of Merry Tales 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 Merry Tales, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
