Chapter 1 of Nonsense Novels is here in full — 398 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Nonsense Novels is here in full — 398 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He began the search. For four days he visited every corner of London. He entered every saloon in the city. In each of them he drank a glass of rum. In some of them he assumed the disguise of a sailor.
Chapter 1 of Nonsense Novels is here in full — 398 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 30/79 · 5 reading units · Lines 146–150
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.
adopted in order to deceive
From this reading “In some of them he assumed the disguise of a sailor.”
A means of altering one's appearance to conceal one's identity.
From this reading “In some of them he assumed the disguise of a sailor.”
inflected form of “drink” — take in liquids
From this reading “In each of them he drank a glass of rum.”
liquor distilled from fermented molasses
From this reading “In each of them he drank a glass of rum.”
any member of a ship's crew
From this reading “In some of them he assumed the disguise of a sailor.”
a room or establishment where alcoholic drinks are served over a counter
From this reading “He entered every saloon in the city.”
try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of
From this reading “He began the search.”
past form of “visit” — go to see a place, as for entertainment
From this reading “For four days he visited every corner of London.”
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 In each of them he drank a glass of rum.
adopted in order to deceive
From this reading In some of them he assumed the disguise of a sailor.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading He began the search.
a large and densely populated urban area; may include several independent administrative districts
From this reading He entered every saloon in the city.
a place off to the side of an area
From this reading For four days he visited every corner of London.
the time during which someone's life continues
From this reading For four days he visited every corner of London.
A means of altering one's appearance to conceal one's identity.
From this reading In some of them he assumed the disguise of a sailor.
inflected form of “drink” — take in liquids
From this reading In each of them he drank a glass of rum.
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading In each of them he drank a glass of rum.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading He entered every saloon in the city.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading For four days he visited every corner of London.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For four days he visited every corner of London.
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
From this reading For four days he visited every corner of London.
a brittle transparent solid with irregular atomic structure
From this reading In each of them he drank a glass of rum.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He began the search.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He entered every saloon in the city.
the capital and largest city of England; located on the Thames in southeastern England; financial and industrial and cultural center
From this reading For four days he visited every corner of London.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading For four days he visited every corner of London.
liquor distilled from fermented molasses
From this reading In each of them he drank a glass of rum.
any member of a ship's crew
From this reading In some of them he assumed the disguise of a sailor.
a room or establishment where alcoholic drinks are served over a counter
From this reading He entered every saloon in the city.
try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of
From this reading He began the search.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading In some of them he assumed the disguise of a sailor.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He began the search.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading In each of them he drank a glass of rum.
past form of “visit” — go to see a place, as for entertainment
From this reading For four days he visited every corner of London.
Chapter 1 of Nonsense Novels by Stephen Leacock holds 398 sentences, grouped into 80 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 1 holds 398 sentences of Nonsense Novels, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Nonsense Novels by Stephen Leacock exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 398 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 1 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 Nonsense Novels by Stephen Leacock on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2415 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #4682 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #4682, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 201 minutes of reading across 483 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Nonsense Novels section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of Nonsense Novels 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 Nonsense Novels, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
