Mrs. Ames

Chapter XII

Chapter 12 of Mrs. Ames is here in full — 359 sentences across 72 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By E. F. (Edward Frederic) Benson • Curated US English Learning Edition

English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

“And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

“If you didn’t hear me, I said, ‘What’s to be done now?’

I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

That’s what you did, Amy.

Narrator

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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English

LEARNER DICTIONARY

Archivist

/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

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A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter XII Reading 1/71

Mrs. Ames

Chapter XII

Chapter 12 of Mrs. Ames is here in full — 359 sentences across 72 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/71 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

“And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

Line 2

“If you didn’t hear me, I said, ‘What’s to be done now?’

Line 3

I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

Line 4

They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

Line 5

That’s what you did, Amy.

Learner Dictionary

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.

above preposition US /əˈbʌv/

higher than, or over, something

From this reading ““And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.”

bacon noun US /ˈbeɪkən/

back and sides of a hog salted and dried or smoked; usually sliced thin and fried

From this reading ““And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.”

chipping noun US /ˈtʃɪpɪŋ/

the act of chipping something

From this reading ““And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.”

fool noun US /fuːl/

a person who lacks good judgment

From this reading “They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’”

Major adjective US /ˈmeɪdʒər/

of greater importance or stature or rank

From this reading ““And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.”

plate noun US /pleɪt/

(baseball) base consisting of a rubber slab where the batter stands; it must be touched by a base runner in order to score

From this reading ““And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.”

point noun US /pɔɪnt/

a geometric element that has position but no extension

From this reading “They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’”

street noun US /striːt/

a thoroughfare (usually including sidewalks) that is lined with buildings

From this reading “They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’”

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

into the air preposition + article + noun counted as “into … air”

In this reading ““And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.”

in the street preposition + article + noun counted as “in … street”

In this reading “They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’”

All words in this reading · 53

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

aboveprepositionUS /əˈbʌv/

higher than, or over, something

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

againadverbUS /əˈɡen/

anew

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

airnounUS /er/

a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

Ames

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

Amy

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading That’s what you did, Amy.

AndconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

baconnounUS /ˈbeɪkən/

back and sides of a hog salted and dried or smoked; usually sliced thin and fried

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

canmodal verbUS /kæn/

to be able to, or to be allowed to

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

chippingnounUS /ˈtʃɪpɪŋ/

the act of chipping something

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

From this reading That’s what you did, Amy.

didn't

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading “If you didn’t hear me, I said, ‘What’s to be done now?’

don't

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

doneadjectiveUS /dʌn/

having finished or arrived at completion

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

facenounUS /feɪs/

the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

foolnounUS /fuːl/

a person who lacks good judgment

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

hearverbUS /hiːr/

perceive (sound) via the auditory sense

From this reading “If you didn’t hear me, I said, ‘What’s to be done now?’

herselfpronounUS /hərˈself/

used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

highadjectiveUS /haɪ/

greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

how

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

From this reading “If you didn’t hear me, I said, ‘What’s to be done now?’

IfconjunctionUS /ɪf/

on condition that; in the event that

From this reading “If you didn’t hear me, I said, ‘What’s to be done now?’

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

knowverbUS /noʊ/

be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

lookverbUS /lʊk/

perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

madeadjectiveUS /meɪd/

produced by a manufacturing process

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

MajoradjectiveUS /ˈmeɪdʒər/

of greater importance or stature or rank

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

mepronounUS /miː/

the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading “If you didn’t hear me, I said, ‘What’s to be done now?’

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

nowadverbUS /naʊ/

in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

platenounUS /pleɪt/

(baseball) base consisting of a rubber slab where the batter stands; it must be touched by a base runner in order to score

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

pointnounUS /pɔɪnt/

a geometric element that has position but no extension

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

Riseborough

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

saidadjectiveUS /sed/

being the one previously mentioned or spoken of

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

sayverbUS /seɪ/

express in words

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

seeverbUS /siː/

perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

streetnounUS /striːt/

a thoroughfare (usually including sidewalks) that is lined with buildings

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

That's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

They'll

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/

a formal word for “on”

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

whatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading That’s what you did, Amy.

what's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading “And what’s to be done now?” said Major Ames, chipping his bacon high into the air above his plate.

whosedeterminerUS /huːz/

belonging to which person

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

wifenounUS /waɪf/

a married woman; a man's partner in marriage

From this reading They’ll point at me in the street, and say, ‘That’s Major Ames, whose wife made a fool of herself.’

wordnounUS /wɜːrd/

a unit of language that native speakers can identify

From this reading I don’t know how you can look Riseborough in the face again, and, upon my word, I don’t see how I can.

youpronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading “If you didn’t hear me, I said, ‘What’s to be done now?’

Chapter 12 of Mrs. Ames by E. F. (Edward Frederic) Benson holds 359 sentences, grouped into 72 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.

What does chapter 12 of Mrs. Ames contain?

Chapter 12 holds 359 sentences of Mrs. Ames, unabridged, divided into 72 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 12 of Mrs. Ames by E. F. (Edward Frederic) Benson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 359 sentences, grouped into 72 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.

How do I study chapter 12 of Mrs. Ames?

Work through the 72 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 72 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.

Can chapter 12 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 12 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.

Questions about reading Mrs. Ames

Common questions about reading Mrs. Ames by E. F. (Edward Frederic) Benson on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Mrs. Ames?

Yes. All 4921 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #60168 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Mrs. Ames is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #60168, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Mrs. Ames take to read?

About 410 minutes of reading across 985 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Mrs. Ames section by section

How to work through Mrs. Ames section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

Open a chapter

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Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.
Listen and tap

Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in Mrs. Ames

Words and structures a reader meets early in Mrs. Ames, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Author: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Mrs. Ames; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Angel: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Mrs. Ames; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Climber: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Mrs. Ames; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Juggernaut: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Mrs. Ames; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.

Chapter XII

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Can chapter 12 be read aloud to me?

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Vocabulary met early in Mrs. Ames