Chapter 40 of Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard is here in full — 231 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XL
Chapter 40 of Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard is here in full — 231 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence. At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle. What are we to do? It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls. “I have a volante here,” the doctor said.
Chapter 40 of Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard is here in full — 231 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/46 · 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.
inflected form of “admit” — declare to be true or admit the existence or reality or truth of
From this reading “It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.”
confined by bonds
From this reading “It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.”
disappointingly unsuccessful
From this reading “The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence.”
United States paleontologist and popularizer of science (1941-2002)
From this reading “It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.”
plural of “look” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading “It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.”
inclined or willing to submit to orders or wishes of others or showing such inclination
From this reading “The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence.”
past form of “venture” — proceed somewhere despite the risk of possible dangers
From this reading “At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.”
any of the numerous plants of the genus Viola
From this reading “At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.”
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 The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence.
inflected form of “admit” — declare to be true or admit the existence or reality or truth of
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading What are we to do?
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
the supreme effort one can make
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
confined by bonds
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
disappointingly unsuccessful
From this reading The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading What are we to do?
a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence.
the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
a young female
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
United States paleontologist and popularizer of science (1941-2002)
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “I have a volante here,” the doctor said.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading “I have a volante here,” the doctor said.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I have a volante here,” the doctor said.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
immediately past
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
plural of “look” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
less than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
past form of “remain” — stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “I have a volante here,” the doctor said.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence.
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
not in physical motion
From this reading The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence.
inclined or willing to submit to orders or wishes of others or showing such inclination
From this reading The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The doctor remained still, in a submissive, disappointed silence.
in or at that place or location
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
in spite of the fact that
From this reading It looks as though father and sister had----” Mrs. Gould admitted that she felt in duty bound to do her best for these girls.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading What are we to do?
past form of “venture” — proceed somewhere despite the risk of possible dangers
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
precisely as stated
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
any of the numerous plants of the genus Viola
From this reading At last he ventured, very low-- “And there is that Viola girl, Giselle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I have a volante here,” the doctor said.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading What are we to do?
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What are we to do?
Chapter 40 of Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard by Joseph Conrad holds 231 sentences, grouped into 47 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 40 holds 231 sentences of Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard, unabridged, divided into 47 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 40 of Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard by Joseph Conrad exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 231 sentences, grouped into 47 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 47 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 47 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 40 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 Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard by Joseph Conrad on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9719 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2021 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2021, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1944 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard 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 Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
