Chapter 12 of Original Short Stories — Volume 06 is here in full — 198 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of Original Short Stories — Volume 06 is here in full — 198 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“You may smoke.” He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me: “What did you say to her?” “I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.” Whereupon I lighted my cigar.
Chapter 12 of Original Short Stories — Volume 06 is here in full — 198 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
a roll of tobacco for smoking
From this reading “Whereupon I lighted my cigar.”
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading “He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:”
a systematic means of communicating by the use of sounds or conventional symbols
From this reading “He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:”
set afire or burning
From this reading “Whereupon I lighted my cigar.”
found pleasant or attractive; often used as a combining form
From this reading ““I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.””
a cloud of fine particles suspended in a gas
From this reading ““You may smoke.””
an exchange of ideas via conversation
From this reading “He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:”
any or all of a kind, it does not matter which
From this reading ““I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.””
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 He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
earlier than; in front of
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
a roll of tobacco for smoking
From this reading Whereupon I lighted my cigar.
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading “What did you say to her?”
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.”
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “What did you say to her?”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
a systematic means of communicating by the use of sounds or conventional symbols
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
set afire or burning
From this reading Whereupon I lighted my cigar.
found pleasant or attractive; often used as a combining form
From this reading “I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.”
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading “You may smoke.”
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading “I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Whereupon I lighted my cigar.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.”
express in words
From this reading “What did you say to her?”
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.”
a cloud of fine particles suspended in a gas
From this reading “You may smoke.”
a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
an exchange of ideas via conversation
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
make an effort or attempt
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “What did you say to her?”
any or all of a kind, it does not matter which
From this reading “I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.”
at the time that
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Whereupon I lighted my cigar.
used to introduce two or more possibilities
From this reading “I asked whether we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we liked.”
which person or people
From this reading He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before them, and asked me:
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You may smoke.”
Chapter 12 of Original Short Stories — Volume 06 by Guy de Maupassant holds 198 sentences, grouped into 40 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 12 holds 198 sentences of Original Short Stories — Volume 06, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Original Short Stories — Volume 06 by Guy de Maupassant exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 198 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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.
Common questions about reading Original Short Stories — Volume 06 by Guy de Maupassant on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2473 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3082 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3082, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 206 minutes of reading across 495 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Original Short Stories — Volume 06 section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of Original Short Stories — Volume 06 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 Original Short Stories — Volume 06, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
