Chapter 1 of On the Tree Top is here in full — 335 sentences across 67 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of On the Tree Top is here in full — 335 sentences across 67 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Clara Doty Bates And Others. Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists. Boston: D. LOTHROP & COMPANY Franklin Street, Cor. Hawley. A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
Chapter 1 of On the Tree Top is here in full — 335 sentences across 67 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 “artist” — a person whose creative work shows sensitivity and imagination
From this reading “Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.”
third-person singular of “bate” — moderate or restrain; lessen the force of
From this reading “Clara Doty Bates And Others.”
state capital and largest city of Massachusetts; a major center for banking and financial services
From this reading “Boston: D. LOTHROP & COMPANY Franklin Street, Cor.”
English botanical writer and publisher (1746-1799)
From this reading “Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.”
United States historian noted for studies of Black American history (born in 1915)
From this reading “Boston: D. LOTHROP & COMPANY Franklin Street, Cor.”
past form of “illustrate” — clarify by giving an example of
From this reading “Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.”
appealing to the emotions as well as the eye
From this reading “A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.”
United States bandleader of a popular big band (1909-1944)
From this reading “A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.”
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 miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Clara Doty Bates And Others.
plural of “artist” — a person whose creative work shows sensitivity and imagination
From this reading Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
third-person singular of “bate” — moderate or restrain; lessen the force of
From this reading Clara Doty Bates And Others.
state capital and largest city of Massachusetts; a major center for banking and financial services
From this reading Boston: D. LOTHROP & COMPANY Franklin Street, Cor.
emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Clara Doty Bates And Others.
an institution created to conduct business
From this reading Boston: D. LOTHROP & COMPANY Franklin Street, Cor.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Boston: D. LOTHROP & COMPANY Franklin Street, Cor.
English botanical writer and publisher (1746-1799)
From this reading Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.
a fat-soluble vitamin that prevents rickets
From this reading Boston: D. LOTHROP & COMPANY Franklin Street, Cor.
a female human offspring
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Clara Doty Bates And Others.
opinion or judgment
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
a degree on the Fahrenheit scale of temperature
From this reading Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.
United States historian noted for studies of Black American history (born in 1915)
From this reading Boston: D. LOTHROP & COMPANY Franklin Street, Cor.
a brittle transparent solid with irregular atomic structure
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
a neutral achromatic color midway between white and black
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hawley.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
past form of “illustrate” — clarify by giving an example of
From this reading Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.
apprehended with certainty
From this reading Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Boston: D. LOTHROP & COMPANY Franklin Street, Cor.
appealing to the emotions as well as the eye
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.
United States bandleader of a popular big band (1909-1944)
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Clara Doty Bates And Others.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
any maneuver made as part of progress toward a goal
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
a thoroughfare (usually including sidewalks) that is lined with buildings
From this reading Boston: D. LOTHROP & COMPANY Franklin Street, Cor.
a base found in DNA (but not in RNA) and derived from pyrimidine; pairs with adenine
From this reading Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading Illustrated by F. T. Merrill, Jessie Curtis, and Other Well Known Artists.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading A miller had a daughter, And lovely, too, she was; Her step was light, her smile was bright, Her eyes were gray as glass.
Chapter 1 of On the Tree Top by Clara Doty Bates holds 335 sentences, grouped into 67 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 335 sentences of On the Tree Top, unabridged, divided into 67 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of On the Tree Top by Clara Doty Bates exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 335 sentences, grouped into 67 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 67 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 67 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 On the Tree Top by Clara Doty Bates on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 993 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #24530 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #24530, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 82 minutes of reading across 199 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through On the Tree Top section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 3 chapters of On the Tree Top 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 On the Tree Top, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
