Chapter 17 of North and South is here in full — 338 sentences across 68 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of North and South is here in full — 338 sentences across 68 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A BLOW AND ITS CONSEQUENCES. “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.” CORN LAW RHYMES. Margaret was shown into the drawing-room. It had returned into its normal state of bag and covering.
Chapter 17 of North and South is here in full — 338 sentences across 68 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/67 · 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.
plural of “bidder” — someone who makes an offer
From this reading ““But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.””
plural of “consequence” — a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon
From this reading “A BLOW AND ITS CONSEQUENCES.”
a natural object that covers or envelops
From this reading “It had returned into its normal state of bag and covering.”
plural of “horde” — a vast multitude
From this reading ““But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.””
impaired by diminution
From this reading ““But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.””
conforming with or constituting a norm or standard or level or type or social norm; not abnormal
From this reading “It had returned into its normal state of bag and covering.”
plural of “rhyme” — correspondence in the sounds of two or more lines (especially final sounds)
From this reading “CORN LAW RHYMES.”
a recompense for worthy acts or retribution for wrongdoing
From this reading ““But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.””
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 A BLOW AND ITS CONSEQUENCES.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A BLOW AND ITS CONSEQUENCES.
a flexible container with a single opening
From this reading It had returned into its normal state of bag and covering.
plural of “bidder” — someone who makes an offer
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
exhale hard
From this reading A BLOW AND ITS CONSEQUENCES.
food made from dough of flour or meal and usually raised with yeast or baking powder and then baked
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
plural of “consequence” — a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon
From this reading A BLOW AND ITS CONSEQUENCES.
tall annual cereal grass bearing kernels on large ears: widely cultivated in America in many varieties; the principal cereal in Mexico and Central and South America since pre-Columbian times
From this reading CORN LAW RHYMES.
a natural object that covers or envelops
From this reading It had returned into its normal state of bag and covering.
dearly loved
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Margaret was shown into the drawing-room.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
inflected form of “grow” — pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It had returned into its normal state of bag and covering.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
plural of “horde” — a vast multitude
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Margaret was shown into the drawing-room.
people of Ireland or of Irish extraction
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It had returned into its normal state of bag and covering.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading A BLOW AND ITS CONSEQUENCES.
the collection of rules imposed by authority
From this reading CORN LAW RHYMES.
impaired by diminution
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Margaret was shown into the drawing-room.
conforming with or constituting a norm or standard or level or type or social norm; not abnormal
From this reading It had returned into its normal state of bag and covering.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It had returned into its normal state of bag and covering.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
past form of “return” — go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before
From this reading It had returned into its normal state of bag and covering.
plural of “rhyme” — correspondence in the sounds of two or more lines (especially final sounds)
From this reading CORN LAW RHYMES.
only a very short time before
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
inflected form of “show” — give an exhibition of to an interested audience
From this reading Margaret was shown into the drawing-room.
the territory occupied by one of the constituent administrative districts of a nation
From this reading It had returned into its normal state of bag and covering.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Margaret was shown into the drawing-room.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
a recompense for worthy acts or retribution for wrongdoing
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Margaret was shown into the drawing-room.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
during the time that
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading “But work grew scarce, while bread grew dear, And wages lessened, too; For Irish hordes were bidders here, Our half-paid work to do.”
Chapter 17 of North and South by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell holds 338 sentences, grouped into 68 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 17 holds 338 sentences of North and South, unabridged, divided into 68 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of North and South by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 338 sentences, grouped into 68 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 68 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 68 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 17 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 North and South by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 10039 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #4276 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #4276, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2008 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through North and South section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of North and South 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 North and South, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
