Chapter 12 of Oliver Ellis is here in full — 88 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of Oliver Ellis is here in full — 88 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
RETRIBUTION. Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea. The sound of a strange voice--a woman's voice, too!--was now heard. A woman in that sequestered lighthouse! From whence, and how had she come?
Chapter 12 of Oliver Ellis is here in full — 88 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/17 · 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 “blow” — a powerful stroke with the fist or a weapon
From this reading “Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.”
a tower with a light that gives warning of shoals to passing ships
From this reading “A woman in that sequestered lighthouse!”
Punishment inflicted on someone as vengeance for a wrong act. (Sự trừng phạt, quả báo thích đáng.)
From this reading “RETRIBUTION.”
providing privacy or seclusion
From this reading “A woman in that sequestered lighthouse!”
a kind of pain such as that caused by a wound or a burn or a sore
From this reading “Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.”
used as intensifiers
From this reading “Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.”
the act of taking revenge (harming someone in retaliation for something harmful that they have done) especially in the next life
From this reading “Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.”
shaped to fit by or as if by altering the contours of a pliable mass (as by work or effort)
From this reading “Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
any plant of the genus Helianthemum; vigorous plants of stony alpine meadows and dry scrub regions
In this reading “Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.”
In this reading “From whence, and how had she come?”
In this reading “Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.”
In this reading “Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.”
In this reading “Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.”
In this reading “Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.”
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 sound of a strange voice--a woman's voice, too!--was now heard.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
plural of “blow” — a powerful stroke with the fist or a weapon
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
treated by heating to a high temperature but below the melting or fusing point
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading From whence, and how had she come?
an old word for “before”
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
morally objectionable behavior
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
an unknown and unpredictable phenomenon that causes an event to result one way rather than another
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading The sound of a strange voice--a woman's voice, too!--was now heard.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading From whence, and how had she come?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading A woman in that sequestered lighthouse!
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
a tower with a light that gives warning of shoals to passing ships
From this reading A woman in that sequestered lighthouse!
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading The sound of a strange voice--a woman's voice, too!--was now heard.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
Punishment inflicted on someone as vengeance for a wrong act. (Sự trừng phạt, quả báo thích đáng.)
From this reading RETRIBUTION.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
providing privacy or seclusion
From this reading A woman in that sequestered lighthouse!
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading From whence, and how had she come?
a kind of pain such as that caused by a wound or a burn or a sore
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading The sound of a strange voice--a woman's voice, too!--was now heard.
not in physical motion
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading The sound of a strange voice--a woman's voice, too!--was now heard.
the star that is the source of light and heat for the planets in the solar system
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
used as intensifiers
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading A woman in that sequestered lighthouse!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading The sound of a strange voice--a woman's voice, too!--was now heard.
the act of taking revenge (harming someone in retaliation for something harmful that they have done) especially in the next life
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading The sound of a strange voice--a woman's voice, too!--was now heard.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The sound of a strange voice--a woman's voice, too!--was now heard.
an old word meaning “from where”
From this reading From whence, and how had she come?
in the company of; together with
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading A woman in that sequestered lighthouse!
possessive form of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading The sound of a strange voice--a woman's voice, too!--was now heard.
shaped to fit by or as if by altering the contours of a pliable mass (as by work or effort)
From this reading Smarting still with the blows those ruffians had given me, I thought of all the evil fortune had wrought me, and burned for vengeance; and terribly I had it, ere the morning sun rose from the sea.
Chapter 12 of Oliver Ellis by James Grant holds 88 sentences, grouped into 18 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 12 holds 88 sentences of Oliver Ellis, unabridged, divided into 18 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Oliver Ellis by James Grant exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 88 sentences, grouped into 18 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 18 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 18 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 12 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.
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