Chapter 1 of Of Human Bondage is here in full — 420 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Of Human Bondage is here in full — 420 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The day broke gray and dull. The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow. A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains. She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed. “Wake up, Philip,” she said.
Chapter 1 of Of Human Bondage is here in full — 420 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
possessive form of “child” — a young person of either sex
plural of “curtain” — hanging cloth used as a blind (especially for a window)
From this reading “A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains.”
to a considerable degree
From this reading “The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.”
in a mechanical manner; by a mechanism
From this reading “She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.”
a porch or entrance to a building consisting of a covered and often columned area
From this reading “She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.”
a chilly dampness
From this reading “The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.”
a plaster now made mostly from Portland cement and sand and lime; applied while soft to cover exterior walls or surfaces
From this reading “She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.”
be awake, be alert, be there
From this reading ““Wake up, Philip,” she said.”
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 clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The day broke gray and dull.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
lacking funds
From this reading The day broke gray and dull.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains.
a young person of either sex
From this reading A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains.
possessive form of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
plural of “cloud” — any collection of particles (e.g., smoke or dust) or gases that is visible
From this reading The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
plural of “curtain” — hanging cloth used as a blind (especially for a window)
From this reading A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading The day broke gray and dull.
United States actor (born in Ireland); father of Georgiana Emma Barrymore (1827-1862)
From this reading A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains.
lacking in liveliness or animation
From this reading The day broke gray and dull.
past form of “glance” — throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
a neutral achromatic color midway between white and black
From this reading The day broke gray and dull.
to a considerable degree
From this reading The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
inflected form of “hang” — be suspended or hanging
From this reading The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains.
in a mechanical manner; by a mechanism
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
being directly across from each other; facing
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
Englishman and husband of Elizabeth II (born 1921)
From this reading “Wake up, Philip,” she said.
a porch or entrance to a building consisting of a covered and often columned area
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
a chilly dampness
From this reading The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Wake up, Philip,” she said.
a person working in the service of another (especially in the household)
From this reading A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
the state of being asleep
From this reading A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains.
precipitation falling from clouds in the form of ice crystals
From this reading The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
a plaster now made mostly from Portland cement and sand and lime; applied while soft to cover exterior walls or surfaces
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
past form of “suggest” — make a proposal, declare a plan for something
From this reading The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The day broke gray and dull.
in or at that place or location
From this reading The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading “Wake up, Philip,” she said.
be awake, be alert, be there
From this reading “Wake up, Philip,” she said.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The clouds hung heavily, and there was a rawness in the air that suggested snow.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains.
in the company of; together with
From this reading She glanced mechanically at the house opposite, a stucco house with a portico, and went to the child’s bed.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading A woman servant came into a room in which a child was sleeping and drew the curtains.
Chapter 1 of Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham holds 420 sentences, grouped into 84 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 1 holds 420 sentences of Of Human Bondage, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 420 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 16284 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #351 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #351, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 3257 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Of Human Bondage section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Of Human Bondage 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 Of Human Bondage, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
