Chapter 17 of Multitude and Solitude is here in full — 380 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of Multitude and Solitude is here in full — 380 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly. He had not expected to see Lionel walk again. The sight made him forget the deaths down in the village. He shouted with joy. Closer examination made him less joyous.
Chapter 17 of Multitude and Solitude is here in full — 380 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/76 · 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.
(comparative of “near” or “close”) within a shorter distance
From this reading “Closer examination made him less joyous.”
intentionally conceived
From this reading “He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.”
plural of “death” — the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading “The sight made him forget the deaths down in the village.”
the act of examining something closely (as for mistakes)
From this reading “Closer examination made him less joyous.”
in an intelligible manner
From this reading “He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.”
full of or characterized by joy
From this reading “Closer examination made him less joyous.”
a portable shelter (usually of canvas stretched over supporting poles and fastened to the ground with ropes and pegs)
From this reading “He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.”
in a weak or feeble manner or to a minor degree
From this reading “He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.”
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 “He shouted with joy.”
In this reading “The sight made him forget the deaths down in the village.”
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.
(usually followed by “to”) having the necessary means or skill or know-how or authority to do something
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
anew
From this reading He had not expected to see Lionel walk again.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
(comparative of “near” or “close”) within a shorter distance
From this reading Closer examination made him less joyous.
intentionally conceived
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
plural of “death” — the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading The sight made him forget the deaths down in the village.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading The sight made him forget the deaths down in the village.
the act of examining something closely (as for mistakes)
From this reading Closer examination made him less joyous.
considered likely or probable to happen or arrive
From this reading He had not expected to see Lionel walk again.
dismiss from the mind; stop remembering
From this reading The sight made him forget the deaths down in the village.
set up or found
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had not expected to see Lionel walk again.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The sight made him forget the deaths down in the village.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The sight made him forget the deaths down in the village.
in an intelligible manner
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
the emotion of great happiness
From this reading He shouted with joy.
full of or characterized by joy
From this reading Closer examination made him less joyous.
used to form the comparative of some adjectives and adverbs
From this reading Closer examination made him less joyous.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading The sight made him forget the deaths down in the village.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading He had not expected to see Lionel walk again.
in a vehement outcry
From this reading He shouted with joy.
an instance of visual perception
From this reading The sight made him forget the deaths down in the village.
exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
a portable shelter (usually of canvas stretched over supporting poles and fastened to the ground with ropes and pegs)
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
a community of people smaller than a town
From this reading The sight made him forget the deaths down in the village.
the act of traveling by foot
From this reading He had not expected to see Lionel walk again.
close enough to be walked to
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
in a weak or feeble manner or to a minor degree
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
in the company of; together with
From this reading He shouted with joy.
but in spite of that
From this reading He found Lionel weakly walking about outside the tent, conscious, but not yet able to talk intelligibly.
Chapter 17 of Multitude and Solitude by John Masefield holds 380 sentences, grouped into 76 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 17 holds 380 sentences of Multitude and Solitude, unabridged, divided into 76 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of Multitude and Solitude by John Masefield exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 380 sentences, grouped into 76 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 76 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 76 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 17 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 Multitude and Solitude by John Masefield on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7061 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #58436 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #58436, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 588 minutes of reading across 1413 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Multitude and Solitude section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of Multitude and Solitude 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 Multitude and Solitude, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
