Chapter 4 of Messalina of the suburbs is here in full — 413 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Messalina of the suburbs is here in full — 413 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone. “You mustn’t,” said Elsie, startled. “Why not?” “I don’t allow liberties.” “We’ll have to settle what liberties are, miss.
Chapter 4 of Messalina of the suburbs is here in full — 413 sentences across 83 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.
make it possible through a specific action or lack of action for something to happen
From this reading ““I don’t allow liberties.””
a top worn by women
From this reading “He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.”
well known or easily recognized
From this reading “He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.”
motion of hands or body to emphasize or help to express a thought or feeling
From this reading “He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.”
plural of “liberty” — immunity from arbitrary exercise of authority: political independence
From this reading ““I don’t allow liberties.””
settle into a position, usually on a surface or ground
From this reading ““We’ll have to settle what liberties are, miss.”
excited by sudden surprise or alarm and making a quick involuntary movement
From this reading ““You mustn’t,” said Elsie, startled.”
having come into contact
From this reading “He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.”
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.
to cause inconvenience or discomfort to
In this reading “He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.”
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 He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
make it possible through a specific action or lack of action for something to happen
From this reading “I don’t allow liberties.”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “We’ll have to settle what liberties are, miss.
at or to a lower level than something
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
a top worn by women
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I don’t allow liberties.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You mustn’t,” said Elsie, startled.
well known or easily recognized
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
the side that is forward or prominent
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
motion of hands or body to emphasize or help to express a thought or feeling
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “We’ll have to settle what liberties are, miss.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I don’t allow liberties.”
and nothing more
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
plural of “liberty” — immunity from arbitrary exercise of authority: political independence
From this reading “I don’t allow liberties.”
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading “We’ll have to settle what liberties are, miss.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You mustn’t,” said Elsie, startled.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “Why not?”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “You mustn’t,” said Elsie, startled.
settle into a position, usually on a surface or ground
From this reading “We’ll have to settle what liberties are, miss.
excited by sudden surprise or alarm and making a quick involuntary movement
From this reading “You mustn’t,” said Elsie, startled.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “We’ll have to settle what liberties are, miss.
having come into contact
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “We’ll have to settle what liberties are, miss.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “We’ll have to settle what liberties are, miss.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading “Why not?”
in the company of; together with
From this reading He put out his hand and, with a familiar gesture, touched the front of her blouse just below her collar-bone.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You mustn’t,” said Elsie, startled.
Chapter 4 of Messalina of the suburbs by E. M. Delafield holds 413 sentences, grouped into 83 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 413 sentences of Messalina of the suburbs, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Messalina of the suburbs by E. M. Delafield exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 413 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 Messalina of the suburbs by E. M. Delafield on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Messalina of the suburbs section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Messalina of the suburbs 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 Messalina of the suburbs, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
