Chapter 7 of Mildred and Elsie is here in full — 92 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of Mildred and Elsie is here in full — 92 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain." Cowley. "O Wallace, forgive me! Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it." Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
Chapter 7 of Mildred and Elsie is here in full — 92 sentences across 19 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/18 · 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.
having come or been brought to a conclusion
From this reading “Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.”
stop blaming or grant forgiveness
From this reading “"O Wallace, forgive me!”
past form of “help” — give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading “Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."”
an effortful attempt to attain a goal
From this reading “"A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."”
heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
From this reading “Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.”
weep convulsively
From this reading “Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.”
Scottish insurgent who led the resistance to Edward I; in 1297 he gained control of Scotland briefly until Edward invaded Scotland again and defeated Wallace and subsequently executed him (1270-1305)
From this reading “"O Wallace, forgive me!”
plural of “world” — everything that exists anywhere
From this reading “Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."”
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.
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 "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cowley.
having come or been brought to a conclusion
From this reading Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
stop blaming or grant forgiveness
From this reading "O Wallace, forgive me!
containing as much or as many as is possible or normal
From this reading Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
highest in quality
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity
From this reading Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
past form of “help” — give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
be the source of pain
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "O Wallace, forgive me!
having or showing great strength or force or intensity
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust
From this reading "O Wallace, forgive me!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
a symptom of some physical hurt or disorder
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
an effortful attempt to attain a goal
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
From this reading Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
weep convulsively
From this reading Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds)
From this reading Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
plural of “ti” — a light strong grey lustrous corrosion-resistant metallic element used in strong lightweight alloys (as for airplane parts); the main sources are rutile and ilmenite
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
characteristic of false pride; having an exaggerated sense of self-importance
From this reading "A mighty pain to love it is, And 'tis a pain that pain to miss; But of all pains, the greatest pain It is to love, but love in vain."
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
Scottish insurgent who led the resistance to Edward I; in 1297 he gained control of Scotland briefly until Edward invaded Scotland again and defeated Wallace and subsequently executed him (1270-1305)
From this reading "O Wallace, forgive me!
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Mildred's voice was full of tears, and she ended with a sigh that was half a sob.
plural of “world” — everything that exists anywhere
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Not for worlds would I have hurt you so if--if I could have helped it."
Chapter 7 of Mildred and Elsie by Martha Finley holds 92 sentences, grouped into 19 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 7 holds 92 sentences of Mildred and Elsie, unabridged, divided into 19 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of Mildred and Elsie by Martha Finley exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 92 sentences, grouped into 19 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 19 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 19 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 7 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 Mildred and Elsie by Martha Finley on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3109 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #45651 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #45651, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 259 minutes of reading across 622 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Mildred and Elsie section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of Mildred and Elsie 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 Mildred and Elsie, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
