Chapter 5 of Our Nig is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Our Nig is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal. It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet. Soon, spring thistles in the way. TUPPER. JAMES' visit concluded.
Chapter 5 of Our Nig is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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 line of approach
From this reading “Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.”
the time at which something is supposed to begin
From this reading “Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.”
becoming dark or darker as from waning light or clouding over
From this reading “Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.”
having a specified kind of border or edge
From this reading “It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.”
a grand and imposing entrance (often extended metaphorically)
From this reading “Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.”
any of numerous short-stemmed plants of the genus Primula having tufted basal leaves and showy flowers clustered in umbels or heads
From this reading “It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.”
plural of “thistle” — any of numerous plants of the family Compositae and especially of the genera Carduus and Cirsium and Onopordum having prickly-edged leaves
From this reading “Soon, spring thistles in the way.”
any of numerous low-growing violas with small flowers
From this reading “It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.”
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 Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
a line of approach
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
the time at which something is supposed to begin
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
having come or been brought to a conclusion
From this reading JAMES' visit concluded.
becoming dark or darker as from waning light or clouding over
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
separated in space or coming from or going to a distance
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
having a specified kind of border or edge
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
plural of “flower” — a plant cultivated for its blooms or blossoms
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
shoot down, of birds
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading JAMES' visit concluded.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
moving easily and quickly; nimble
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
a course of conduct
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
a grand and imposing entrance (often extended metaphorically)
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
any of numerous short-stemmed plants of the genus Primula having tufted basal leaves and showy flowers clustered in umbels or heads
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
yielding readily to pressure or weight
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
in the near future
From this reading Soon, spring thistles in the way.
the season of growth
From this reading Soon, spring thistles in the way.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
plural of “thistle” — any of numerous plants of the family Compositae and especially of the genera Carduus and Cirsium and Onopordum having prickly-edged leaves
From this reading Soon, spring thistles in the way.
very small
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
plural of “tree” — a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading TUPPER.
of many different kinds purposefully arranged but lacking any uniformity
From this reading Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end in a distant, massy portal.
any of numerous low-growing violas with small flowers
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
go to see a place, as for entertainment
From this reading JAMES' visit concluded.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Soon, spring thistles in the way.
in the company of; together with
From this reading It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, A little path of lawny grass and soft to tiny feet.
Chapter 5 of Our Nig by Harriet E. Wilson holds 109 sentences, grouped into 22 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 5 holds 109 sentences of Our Nig, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Our Nig by Harriet E. Wilson exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 109 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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 5 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, a public-domain edition. 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.
