Chapter 28 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. IV is here in full — 400 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVIII
Chapter 28 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. IV is here in full — 400 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Away! The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more. They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train! I near had gorged too long! Who said that I had lost the train?
Chapter 28 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. IV is here in full — 400 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
an old form of “are”, used with “thou”
From this reading “The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.”
A series of thoughts, images, or emotions during sleep.
From this reading “The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.”
devoid of good sense or judgment
From this reading “The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.”
possession of controlling influence
From this reading “They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!”
line that is the commercial organization responsible for operating a system of transportation for trains that pull passengers or freight
From this reading “They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!”
-ing form of “shunt” — transfer to another track, of trains
From this reading “The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.”
past form of “tempt” — dispose or incline or entice to
From this reading “They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!”
create by training and teaching
From this reading “They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!”
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.
anew
In this reading “The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.”
In this reading “The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.”
In this reading “I near had gorged too long!”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
an old form of “are”, used with “thou”
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Away!
A series of thoughts, images, or emotions during sleep.
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
devoid of good sense or judgment
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I near had gorged too long!
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading I near had gorged too long!
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
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 I near had gorged too long!
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading Who said that I had lost the train?
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading I near had gorged too long!
throughout a period of time
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
on one occasion
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
possession of controlling influence
From this reading They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!
line that is the commercial organization responsible for operating a system of transportation for trains that pull passengers or freight
From this reading They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Who said that I had lost the train?
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
-ing form of “shunt” — transfer to another track, of trains
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
not in physical motion
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
having strength or power greater than average or expected
From this reading They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!
past form of “tempt” — dispose or incline or entice to
From this reading They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading The foolish dream is o’er; I see that thou art shunting still, and here thou art once more.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading I near had gorged too long!
create by training and teaching
From this reading They tempted me, my railway train, for hunger’s power is strong; They tempted me, my railway train!
which person or people
From this reading Who said that I had lost the train?
Chapter 28 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. IV by Walter [Compiler] Hamilton holds 400 sentences, grouped into 80 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 28 holds 400 sentences of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. IV, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 28 of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. IV by Walter [Compiler] Hamilton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 400 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 28 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 Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. IV by Walter [Compiler] Hamilton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 12164 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #70546 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #70546, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2433 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. IV section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 31 chapters of Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. IV 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 Parodies of the works of English & American authors, vol. IV, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
