Chapter 1 of Our Nig is here in full — 103 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Our Nig is here in full — 103 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease. I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way." "No, no, Mag! don't talk so. You shan't starve so long as I have barrels to hoop. Peter Greene boards me cheap.
Chapter 1 of Our Nig is here in full — 103 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 9/20 · 5 reading units · Lines 41–45
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.
the amount that many barrels might hold
From this reading “You shan't starve so long as I have barrels to hoop.”
(used in the plural) the stage of a theater
From this reading “Peter Greene boards me cheap.”
relatively low in price or charging low prices
From this reading “Peter Greene boards me cheap.”
an impairment of health or a condition of abnormal functioning
From this reading “Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.”
English novelist and Catholic (1904-1991)
From this reading “Peter Greene boards me cheap.”
a light curved skeleton to spread out a skirt
From this reading “You shan't starve so long as I have barrels to hoop.”
a periodic publication containing pictures and stories and articles of interest to those who purchase it or subscribe to it
From this reading “"No, no, Mag! don't talk so.”
be hungry; go without food
From this reading “You shan't starve so long as I have barrels to hoop.”
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 I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
exceptionally bad or displeasing
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
the amount that many barrels might hold
From this reading You shan't starve so long as I have barrels to hoop.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
(used in the plural) the stage of a theater
From this reading Peter Greene boards me cheap.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
relatively low in price or charging low prices
From this reading Peter Greene boards me cheap.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
an impairment of health or a condition of abnormal functioning
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
considered likely or probable to happen or arrive
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
your parents
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
showing or causing joy and pleasure; especially made happy
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
English novelist and Catholic (1904-1991)
From this reading Peter Greene boards me cheap.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
a light curved skeleton to spread out a skirt
From this reading You shan't starve so long as I have barrels to hoop.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading You shan't starve so long as I have barrels to hoop.
a periodic publication containing pictures and stories and articles of interest to those who purchase it or subscribe to it
From this reading "No, no, Mag! don't talk so.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
not any; not one
From this reading "No, no, Mag! don't talk so.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
a human being
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
disciple of Jesus and leader of the Apostles; regarded by Catholics as the vicar of Christ on earth and first Pope
From this reading Peter Greene boards me cheap.
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You shan't starve so long as I have barrels to hoop.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "No, no, Mag! don't talk so.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
be hungry; go without food
From this reading You shan't starve so long as I have barrels to hoop.
exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading "No, no, Mag! don't talk so.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
in or at that place or location
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Folks seem as afraid to come here as if they expected to get some awful disease.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading I don't believe there is a person in the world but would be glad to have me dead and out of the way."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You shan't starve so long as I have barrels to hoop.
Chapter 1 of Our Nig by Harriet E. Wilson holds 103 sentences, grouped into 21 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 103 sentences of Our Nig, unabridged, divided into 21 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Our Nig by Harriet E. Wilson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 103 sentences, grouped into 21 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 21 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 21 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 Our Nig by Harriet E. Wilson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1477 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #584 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #584, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 123 minutes of reading across 296 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Our Nig section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Our Nig 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 Our Nig, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
