Chapter 21 of New Grub Street is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXI
Chapter 21 of New Grub Street is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule. He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily. One afternoon he found Dora working alone. Maud, he was told, had gone to lunch at Mrs Lane’s. ‘So soon again?
Chapter 21 of New Grub Street is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
unaffected by self-interest
From this reading “He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.”
past form of “exhibit” — show an attribute, property, knowledge, or skill
From this reading “He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.”
a lack of patience; irritation with anything that causes delay
From this reading “He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.”
address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading “Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.”
an opaque form of quartz; red or yellow or brown or dark green in color; used for ornamentation or as a gemstone
From this reading “Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.”
possessive form of “lane” — a narrow way or road
of or relating to or venerating the Virgin Mary
From this reading “Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.”
period extending from Dec. 24 to Jan. 6
From this reading “Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.”
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 exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
the part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading One afternoon he found Dora working alone.
anew
From this reading ‘So soon again?
Having no one else present.
From this reading One afternoon he found Dora working alone.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Maud, he was told, had gone to lunch at Mrs Lane’s.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
every day; without missing a day
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
unaffected by self-interest
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading One afternoon he found Dora working alone.
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
past form of “exhibit” — show an attribute, property, knowledge, or skill
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
set up or found
From this reading One afternoon he found Dora working alone.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
destroyed or killed
From this reading Maud, he was told, had gone to lunch at Mrs Lane’s.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
a lack of patience; irritation with anything that causes delay
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
an opaque form of quartz; red or yellow or brown or dark green in color; used for ornamentation or as a gemstone
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
possessive form of “lane” — a narrow way or road
From this reading Maud, he was told, had gone to lunch at Mrs Lane’s.
take the midday meal
From this reading Maud, he was told, had gone to lunch at Mrs Lane’s.
of or relating to or venerating the Virgin Mary
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Maud, he was told, had gone to lunch at Mrs Lane’s.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading Maud, he was told, had gone to lunch at Mrs Lane’s.
information about recent and important events
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
not any; not one
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One afternoon he found Dora working alone.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
plural of “sister” — a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading ‘So soon again?
in the near future
From this reading ‘So soon again?
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
not in physical motion
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading Maud, he was told, had gone to lunch at Mrs Lane’s.
the quality of a person's voice
From this reading He exhibited no impatience, spoke of the matter in a disinterested tone; still, he came daily.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Maud, he was told, had gone to lunch at Mrs Lane’s.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
actively engaged in paid work
From this reading One afternoon he found Dora working alone.
period extending from Dec. 24 to Jan. 6
From this reading Each day Jasper came to inquire of his sisters if they had news from Wattleborough or from Marian Yule.
Chapter 21 of New Grub Street by George Gissing holds 409 sentences, grouped into 82 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 21 holds 409 sentences of New Grub Street, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 21 of New Grub Street by George Gissing exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 409 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 21 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 New Grub Street by George Gissing on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 13095 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1709 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1709, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2619 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through New Grub Street section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 35 chapters of New Grub Street 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 New Grub Street, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
