Chapter 5 of Milton: Minor Poems is here in full — 415 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Milton: Minor Poems is here in full — 415 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings. 301. And play i' the plighted clouds. Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together. I was awe-strook.
Chapter 5 of Milton: Minor Poems is here in full — 415 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
formal attendance (in court or at a hearing) of a party in an action
From this reading “Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.”
plural of “being” — the state or fact of existing
From this reading “299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.”
-ing form of “conceive” — have the idea for
From this reading “Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.”
plural of “creature” — a living organism characterized by voluntary movement
From this reading “299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.”
an abstract part of something
From this reading “299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.”
past form of “fold” — bend or lay so that one part covers the other
From this reading “Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.”
past form of “plait” — make by braiding or interlacing
supernatural forces and events and beings collectively
From this reading “299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 301.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading 299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And play i' the plighted clouds.
formal attendance (in court or at a hearing) of a party in an action
From this reading Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I was awe-strook.
plural of “being” — the state or fact of existing
From this reading 299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.
plural of “cloud” — any collection of particles (e.g., smoke or dust) or gases that is visible
From this reading And play i' the plighted clouds.
-ing form of “conceive” — have the idea for
From this reading Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.
plural of “creature” — a living organism characterized by voluntary movement
From this reading 299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.
an abstract part of something
From this reading 299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.
past form of “fold” — bend or lay so that one part covers the other
From this reading Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading 299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading And play i' the plighted clouds.
thing or person that acts to produce a particular effect or achieve an end
From this reading Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading 299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.
past form of “plait” — make by braiding or interlacing
From this reading Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.
participate in games or sport
From this reading And play i' the plighted clouds.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And play i' the plighted clouds.
a writer of poems (the term is usually reserved for writers of good poetry)
From this reading Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.
with considerable certainty; without much doubt
From this reading Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.
supernatural forces and events and beings collectively
From this reading 299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading 299. gay creatures of the element: creatures of the air,--supernatural beings.
in contact with each other or in proximity
From this reading Probably the poet means the _plaited_, or _pleated_, clouds, conceiving the clouds as appearing folded together.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was awe-strook.
Chapter 5 of Milton: Minor Poems by John Milton holds 415 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 5 holds 415 sentences of Milton: Minor Poems, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Milton: Minor Poems by John Milton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 415 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 5 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 Milton: Minor Poems by John Milton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2570 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #31706 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #31706, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 214 minutes of reading across 514 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Milton: Minor Poems section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of Milton: Minor Poems 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 Milton: Minor Poems, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
