Chapter 9 of Minerva's Manoeuvres is here in full — 211 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Minerva's Manoeuvres is here in full — 211 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE ’CORDEEN COMES. THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva. To _her_ it was a package of sunlight. In _fact_ it was the accordeon. As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
Chapter 9 of Minerva's Manoeuvres is here in full — 211 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/42 · 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.
dearly loved
From this reading “As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.”
a collection of things wrapped or boxed together
From this reading “As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.”
the act of preparing something (as food) by the application of heat
From this reading “As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.”
give expression to
From this reading “THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.”
a device that requires skill for proper use
From this reading “As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.”
(Roman mythology) goddess of wisdom; counterpart of Greek Athena
From this reading “THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.”
a collection of things wrapped or boxed together
From this reading “THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.”
the rays of the sun
From this reading “To _her_ it was a package of sunlight.”
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 To _her_ it was a package of sunlight.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In _fact_ it was the accordeon.
the part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
dearly loved
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.
a collection of things wrapped or boxed together
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
plural of “come” — the thick white fluid containing spermatozoa that is ejaculated by the male genital tract
From this reading THE ’CORDEEN COMES.
the act of preparing something (as food) by the application of heat
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE ’CORDEEN COMES.
the main meal of the day served in the evening or at midday
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
give expression to
From this reading THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.
a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred
From this reading In _fact_ it was the accordeon.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading To _her_ it was a package of sunlight.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading In _fact_ it was the accordeon.
a device that requires skill for proper use
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading To _her_ it was a package of sunlight.
(Roman mythology) goddess of wisdom; counterpart of Greek Athena
From this reading THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading To _her_ it was a package of sunlight.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
a collection of things wrapped or boxed together
From this reading THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.
participate in games or sport
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
in the near future
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading As soon as Minerva opened the bundle she stopped cooking dinner and began to play on her beloved instrument.
the rays of the sun
From this reading To _her_ it was a package of sunlight.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE ’CORDEEN COMES.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading THAT afternoon Bert brought an express package to Minerva.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading To _her_ it was a package of sunlight.
Chapter 9 of Minerva's Manoeuvres by Charles Battell Loomis holds 211 sentences, grouped into 43 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 9 holds 211 sentences of Minerva's Manoeuvres, unabridged, divided into 43 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Minerva's Manoeuvres by Charles Battell Loomis exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 211 sentences, grouped into 43 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 43 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 43 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 9 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 Minerva's Manoeuvres by Charles Battell Loomis on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4595 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56872 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56872, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 382 minutes of reading across 919 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Minerva's Manoeuvres section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 35 chapters of Minerva's Manoeuvres 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 Minerva's Manoeuvres, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
