Chapter 20 of Napoleon and Blücher: An Historical Novel is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of Napoleon and Blücher: An Historical Novel is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE HEROIC TAILOR. The tailor and his hands were very busy. All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about. On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work. Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
Chapter 20 of Napoleon and Blücher: An Historical Novel is here in full — 180 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/36 · 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 long seat for more than one person
From this reading “On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.”
plural of “cloth” — artifact made by weaving or felting or knitting or crocheting natural or synthetic fibers
From this reading “All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.”
having color or a certain color; sometimes used in combination
From this reading “All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.”
treated with disrespect and contempt
From this reading “Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.”
very imposing or impressive; surpassing the ordinary (especially in size or scale)
From this reading “THE HEROIC TAILOR.”
adjust to a specific need or market
From this reading “THE HEROIC TAILOR.”
plural of “uniform” — clothing of distinctive design worn by members of a particular group as a means of identification
From this reading “All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.”
plural of “workman” — an employee who performs manual or industrial labor
From this reading “On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.”
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 Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.
(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 All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The tailor and his hands were very busy.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.
a long seat for more than one person
From this reading On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.
actively or fully engaged or occupied
From this reading The tailor and his hands were very busy.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
plural of “cloth” — artifact made by weaving or felting or knitting or crocheting natural or synthetic fibers
From this reading All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.
having color or a certain color; sometimes used in combination
From this reading All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.
treated with disrespect and contempt
From this reading Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
From this reading On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading The tailor and his hands were very busy.
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.
very imposing or impressive; surpassing the ordinary (especially in size or scale)
From this reading THE HEROIC TAILOR.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The tailor and his hands were very busy.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.
discontinued temporarily
From this reading Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.
an area that is approximately central within some larger region
From this reading On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.
sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.
an open or empty space in or between things
From this reading Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
plural of “piece” — a separate part of a whole
From this reading All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
plural of “sort” — a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.
adjust to a specific need or market
From this reading THE HEROIC TAILOR.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE HEROIC TAILOR.
plural of “uniform” — clothing of distinctive design worn by members of a particular group as a means of identification
From this reading All sorts of colored cloths and pieces of uniforms were lying about.
precisely as stated
From this reading The tailor and his hands were very busy.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The tailor and his hands were very busy.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading Not a word interrupted the silence now desecrated by the noise of the opening door.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.
plural of “workman” — an employee who performs manual or industrial labor
From this reading On the bench, in the middle of the room, sat four workmen, hard at work.
Chapter 20 of Napoleon and Blücher: An Historical Novel by L. (Luise) Mühlbach holds 180 sentences, grouped into 36 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 20 holds 180 sentences of Napoleon and Blücher: An Historical Novel, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of Napoleon and Blücher: An Historical Novel by L. (Luise) Mühlbach exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 180 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 20 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 Napoleon and Blücher: An Historical Novel by L. (Luise) Mühlbach on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 10484 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3801 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3801, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2097 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Napoleon and Blücher: An Historical Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Napoleon and Blücher: An Historical Novel 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 Napoleon and Blücher: An Historical Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
