Chapter 14 of Mistress Nell: A Merry Tale of a Merry Time is here in full — 112 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIV
Chapter 14 of Mistress Nell: A Merry Tale of a Merry Time is here in full — 112 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride. His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty. With him came Portsmouth. "Can you forgive me, Sire?" she asked. "I had promised the dance to Beau Adair.
Chapter 14 of Mistress Nell: A Merry Tale of a Merry Time is here in full — 112 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/22 · 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 man who is the lover of a man or woman
From this reading “"I had promised the dance to Beau Adair.”
made troubled or apprehensive or distressed in appearance
From this reading “His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.”
belonging to the past; of what is important or famous in the past
From this reading “_For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.”
full of or characterized by humor
From this reading “His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.”
a port city in southeastern Virginia on the Elizabeth River opposite Norfolk; naval base; shipyards
From this reading “With him came Portsmouth.”
a step in walking or running
From this reading “_For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.”
plural of “trifle” — a cold pudding made of layers of sponge cake spread with fruit or jelly; may be decorated with nuts, cream, or chocolate
From this reading “His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.”
have a certain weight
From this reading “His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.”
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.
In this reading “His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.”
In this reading “_For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.”
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 "I had promised the dance to Beau Adair.
(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 His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "Can you forgive me, Sire?" she asked.
a man who is the lover of a man or woman
From this reading "I had promised the dance to Beau Adair.
the part of the face above the eyes
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading With him came Portsmouth.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "Can you forgive me, Sire?" she asked.
made troubled or apprehensive or distressed in appearance
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
an artistic form of nonverbal communication
From this reading "I had promised the dance to Beau Adair.
a division of the United Kingdom
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
stop blaming or grant forgiveness
From this reading "Can you forgive me, Sire?" she asked.
a state of high honor
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading "I had promised the dance to Beau Adair.
to a considerable degree
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading With him came Portsmouth.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
belonging to the past; of what is important or famous in the past
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
full of or characterized by humor
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I had promised the dance to Beau Adair.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
impressiveness in scale or proportion
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Can you forgive me, Sire?" she asked.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
a port city in southeastern Virginia on the Elizabeth River opposite Norfolk; naval base; shipyards
From this reading With him came Portsmouth.
a false or unsupportable quality
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
past form of “promise” — make a promise or commitment
From this reading "I had promised the dance to Beau Adair.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Can you forgive me, Sire?" she asked.
make (offspring) by reproduction
From this reading "Can you forgive me, Sire?" she asked.
a step in walking or running
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
plural of “trifle” — a cold pudding made of layers of sponge cake spread with fruit or jelly; may be decorated with nuts, cream, or chocolate
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
have a certain weight
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
in the company of; together with
From this reading _For the glory of England?_ The King entered the room with his historic stride.
an established custom
From this reading His brow was clouded; but it was all humorous pretence, for trifles were not wont to weigh heavily upon his Majesty.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Can you forgive me, Sire?" she asked.
Chapter 14 of Mistress Nell: A Merry Tale of a Merry Time by George Cochrane Hazelton holds 112 sentences, grouped into 23 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 14 holds 112 sentences of Mistress Nell: A Merry Tale of a Merry Time, unabridged, divided into 23 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 14 of Mistress Nell: A Merry Tale of a Merry Time by George Cochrane Hazelton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 112 sentences, grouped into 23 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 23 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 23 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 14 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 Mistress Nell: A Merry Tale of a Merry Time by George Cochrane Hazelton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4120 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #31370 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #31370, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 343 minutes of reading across 824 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Mistress Nell: A Merry Tale of a Merry Time section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 18 chapters of Mistress Nell: A Merry Tale of a Merry Time 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 Mistress Nell: A Merry Tale of a Merry Time, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
