Chapter 27 of My Little Sister is here in full — 367 sentences across 74 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVII
Chapter 27 of My Little Sister is here in full — 367 sentences across 74 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes. They showed us the drawing-room door. As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look. Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces? He had a red blotchy face.
Chapter 27 of My Little Sister is here in full — 367 sentences across 74 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/73 · 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.
exercising or involving careful evaluations
From this reading “As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.”
marked with irregularly shaped spots or blots
From this reading “He had a red blotchy face.”
intentionally conceived
From this reading “As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.”
marked by complexity and richness of detail
From this reading “Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?”
of an achromatic color of any lightness intermediate between the extremes of white and black
From this reading “Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?”
move something or somebody to a lower position
From this reading “AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.”
plural of “niece” — a daughter of your brother or sister
From this reading “Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?”
engaged in or accustomed to close observation
From this reading “AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.”
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 “AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.”
In this reading “AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.”
a man who is very old
In this reading “Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?”
In this reading “Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?”
In this reading “AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.”
keep in mind for attention or consideration
In this reading “Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?”
to come or go into
In this reading “As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.”
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 He had a red blotchy face.
anew
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
exercising or involving careful evaluations
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
marked with irregularly shaped spots or blots
From this reading He had a red blotchy face.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
intentionally conceived
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
the main meal of the day served in the evening or at midday
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading They showed us the drawing-room door.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They showed us the drawing-room door.
marked by complexity and richness of detail
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
opinion or judgment
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading He had a red blotchy face.
of an achromatic color of any lightness intermediate between the extremes of white and black
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had a red blotchy face.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had a red blotchy face.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
move something or somebody to a lower position
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
plural of “niece” — a daughter of your brother or sister
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
red color or pigment; the chromatic color resembling the hue of blood
From this reading He had a red blotchy face.
past form of “show” — give an exhibition of to an interested audience
From this reading They showed us the drawing-room door.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They showed us the drawing-room door.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
in the direction of
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
the act of changing or reversing the direction of the course
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading They showed us the drawing-room door.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
engaged in or accustomed to close observation
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading As we came in, I was conscious again of Aunt Josephine's appraising look.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
in the company of; together with
From this reading AT DINNER Down in the lower hall were the men-servants with their watchful eyes.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Then of the elaborate grey head turning towards an old man, as if to ask: Well, what do you think of my nieces?
Chapter 27 of My Little Sister by Elizabeth Robins holds 367 sentences, grouped into 74 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 27 holds 367 sentences of My Little Sister, unabridged, divided into 74 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 27 of My Little Sister by Elizabeth Robins exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 367 sentences, grouped into 74 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 74 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 74 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 27 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 My Little Sister by Elizabeth Robins on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5145 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #36220 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #36220, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 428 minutes of reading across 1029 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through My Little Sister section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 34 chapters of My Little Sister 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 My Little Sister, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
