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Chapter 5 of Night watches [complete] is here in full — 429 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Night watches [complete] is here in full — 429 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong. Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak. Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper. “Is my dinner ready?” I ses, easy-like.
Chapter 5 of Night watches [complete] is here in full — 429 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/85 · 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.
having or capable of producing colors
From this reading “Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.”
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading “Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.”
departing or being caused to depart from the true vertical or horizontal
From this reading “Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.”
having been got the better of
From this reading “Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.”
informal term of address for someone's wife
From this reading “Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.”
a sudden outburst of anger
From this reading “Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.”
a shaky motion
From this reading “Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.”
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth
From this reading “The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong.”
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 Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
a public promotion of some product or service
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.
(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 Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
having or capable of producing colors
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.
the main meal of the day served in the evening or at midday
From this reading “Is my dinner ready?”
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I ses, easy-like.
a trivalent metallic element of the rare earth group; occurs with yttrium
From this reading Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
at or to or toward the front
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
destroyed or killed
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Is my dinner ready?”
departing or being caused to depart from the true vertical or horizontal
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
having been got the better of
From this reading Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.
plural of “lip” — either of two fleshy folds of tissue that surround the mouth and play a role in speaking
From this reading Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.
informal term of address for someone's wife
From this reading Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.
a particular point in time
From this reading The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong.
above and across; more than
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
completely prepared or in condition for immediate action or use or progress
From this reading “Is my dinner ready?”
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I ses, easy-like.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong.
express in speech
From this reading Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.
a sudden outburst of anger
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong.
in or at that place or location
From this reading The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading Three times my missis licked 'er lips afore she could speak.
a shaky motion
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong.
a Caucasian
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Her face 'ad gone a dirty white colour, and she was leaning forward with her 'ands on her 'ips, trembling all over with temper.
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth
From this reading The moment I opened the door I see there was something wrong.
Chapter 5 of Night watches [complete] by W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs holds 429 sentences, grouped into 86 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 5 holds 429 sentences of Night watches [complete], unabridged, divided into 86 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Night watches [complete] by W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 429 sentences, grouped into 86 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 86 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 86 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 5 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 Night watches [complete] by W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2592 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #12161 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #12161, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 216 minutes of reading across 519 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Night watches [complete] section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of Night watches [complete] 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 Night watches [complete], each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
