Chapter 15 of No Thoroughfare is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of No Thoroughfare is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"You shall see the clock," he said proudly. "I possess the greatest curiosity in Europe. It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it. I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me. See! here it is, on the right-hand wall at the side of the door."
Chapter 15 of No Thoroughfare is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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 timepiece that shows the time of day
From this reading “"You shall see the clock," he said proudly.”
a state in which you want to learn more about something
From this reading “"I possess the greatest curiosity in Europe.”
the 2nd smallest continent (actually a vast peninsula of Eurasia); the British use “Europe” to refer to all of the continent except the British Isles
From this reading “"I possess the greatest curiosity in Europe.”
have as an attribute, knowledge, or skill
From this reading “"I possess the greatest curiosity in Europe.”
a special advantage or immunity or benefit not enjoyed by all
From this reading “I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.”
blessed with privileges
From this reading “It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.”
with pride; in a proud manner
From this reading “"You shall see the clock," he said proudly.”
located on or directed toward the right
From this reading “See! here it is, on the right-hand wall at the side of the door."”
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 It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.
a timepiece that shows the time of day
From this reading "You shall see the clock," he said proudly.
a state in which you want to learn more about something
From this reading "I possess the greatest curiosity in Europe.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading See! here it is, on the right-hand wall at the side of the door."
to come or go into
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
the 2nd smallest continent (actually a vast peninsula of Eurasia); the British use “Europe” to refer to all of the continent except the British Isles
From this reading "I possess the greatest curiosity in Europe.
opinion or judgment
From this reading It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.
possessive form of “father” — a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
highest in quality
From this reading "I possess the greatest curiosity in Europe.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "You shall see the clock," he said proudly.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading See! here it is, on the right-hand wall at the side of the door."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I possess the greatest curiosity in Europe.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "I possess the greatest curiosity in Europe.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading See! here it is, on the right-hand wall at the side of the door."
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
and nothing more
From this reading It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.
have as an attribute, knowledge, or skill
From this reading "I possess the greatest curiosity in Europe.
a special advantage or immunity or benefit not enjoyed by all
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
blessed with privileges
From this reading It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.
with pride; in a proud manner
From this reading "You shall see the clock," he said proudly.
located on or directed toward the right
From this reading See! here it is, on the right-hand wall at the side of the door."
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "You shall see the clock," he said proudly.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "You shall see the clock," he said proudly.
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading "You shall see the clock," he said proudly.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading See! here it is, on the right-hand wall at the side of the door."
a male human offspring
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "You shall see the clock," he said proudly.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading See! here it is, on the right-hand wall at the side of the door."
which person or people
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
belonging to which person
From this reading It is only a privileged few whose eyes can look at it.
in the company of; together with
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You shall see the clock," he said proudly.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I give the privilege to your good father's son--you shall be one of the favoured few who enter the room with me.
Chapter 15 of No Thoroughfare by Charles Dickens holds 199 sentences, grouped into 40 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 15 holds 199 sentences of No Thoroughfare, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of No Thoroughfare by Charles Dickens exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 199 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 15 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 No Thoroughfare by Charles Dickens on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3104 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1423 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1423, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 258 minutes of reading across 621 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through No Thoroughfare section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 16 chapters of No Thoroughfare 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 No Thoroughfare, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
