Chapter 37 of Miss Billy is here in full — 90 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXVII
Chapter 37 of Miss Billy is here in full — 90 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda. “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said. “I'd rather not go in now. Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer. And now--good-by.”
Chapter 37 of Miss Billy is here in full — 90 sentences across 18 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.
a short stout club used primarily by policemen
From this reading “THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.”
having or marked by bends or angles; not straight or aligned
From this reading “THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.”
a plot of ground where plants are cultivated
From this reading ““I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.”
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading “Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.”
stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading “Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.”
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading ““I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.”
successive (without a break)
From this reading “THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.”
a porch along the outside of a building (sometimes partly enclosed)
From this reading “THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.”
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 Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.
later than; following
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.
surrounding, or on every side of, something
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
a short stout club used primarily by policemen
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.
having or marked by bends or angles; not straight or aligned
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
dearly loved
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
a plot of ground where plants are cultivated
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
a farewell remark
From this reading And now--good-by.”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I'd rather not go in now.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “I'd rather not go in now.
and nothing more
From this reading Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.
for more time
From this reading Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
engage in
From this reading Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “I'd rather not go in now.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.
on the contrary
From this reading “I'd rather not go in now.
enter again
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
express in words
From this reading Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.
stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
successive (without a break)
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
a thoroughfare (usually including sidewalks) that is lined with buildings
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Just make my adieus, please, and say that I couldn't stay any longer.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
a porch along the outside of a building (sometimes partly enclosed)
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading “I will go down the steps and around by the rose garden to the street, dear,” he said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
in the company of; together with
From this reading THE CROOKED MADE STRAIGHT William did not re-enter the house after his talk with Billy on the veranda.
Chapter 37 of Miss Billy by Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter holds 90 sentences, grouped into 18 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 37 holds 90 sentences of Miss Billy, unabridged, divided into 18 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 37 of Miss Billy by Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 90 sentences, grouped into 18 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 18 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 18 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 37 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 Miss Billy by Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4086 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3266 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3266, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 340 minutes of reading across 818 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Miss Billy section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of Miss Billy 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 Miss Billy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
