Chapter 5 of Penelope: A Comedy in Three Acts is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Penelope: A Comedy in Three Acts is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
DICKIE. [_Dryly._] Very. [_She gives a little laugh. She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE. What on earth are you doing?
Chapter 5 of Penelope: A Comedy in Three Acts is here in full — 396 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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.
as if with kid gloves; with caution or prudence or tact
From this reading “She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.”
a small third seat in the back of an old-fashioned two-seater
From this reading “DICKIE.”
in a dry laconic manner
plural of “fling” — a usually brief attempt
From this reading “She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.”
plural of “get” — a return on a shot that seemed impossible to reach and would normally have resulted in a point for the opponent
From this reading “She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.”
plural of “give” — the elasticity of something that can be stretched and returns to its original length
From this reading “[_She gives a little laugh.”
the sound of laughing
From this reading “[_She gives a little laugh.”
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading “She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.”
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.
used with question words to convey surprise
In this reading “What on earth are you doing?”
rise to one's feet
In this reading “She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.”
In this reading “[_She gives a little laugh.”
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 [_She gives a little laugh.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading What on earth are you doing?
as if with kid gloves; with caution or prudence or tact
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
a small third seat in the back of an old-fashioned two-seater
From this reading DICKIE.
-ing form of “do” — engage in
From this reading What on earth are you doing?
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
in a dry laconic manner
From this reading [_Dryly._] Very.
the 3rd planet from the sun; the planet we live on
From this reading What on earth are you doing?
plural of “fling” — a usually brief attempt
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
plural of “get” — a return on a shot that seemed impossible to reach and would normally have resulted in a point for the opponent
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
plural of “give” — the elasticity of something that can be stretched and returns to its original length
From this reading [_She gives a little laugh.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
the sound of laughing
From this reading [_She gives a little laugh.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading [_She gives a little laugh.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading What on earth are you doing?
To move from a closed position.
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading [_She gives a little laugh.
a flight of stairs or a flight of steps
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading She gets up and steps cautiously to the door, and suddenly flings it open._ DICKIE.
precisely as stated
From this reading [_Dryly._] Very.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What on earth are you doing?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading What on earth are you doing?
Chapter 5 of Penelope: A Comedy in Three Acts by W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham holds 396 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 5 holds 396 sentences of Penelope: A Comedy in Three Acts, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Penelope: A Comedy in Three Acts by W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 396 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 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 Penelope: A Comedy in Three Acts by W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3202 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #50180 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #50180, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 266 minutes of reading across 641 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Penelope: A Comedy in Three Acts section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of Penelope: A Comedy in Three Acts 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 Penelope: A Comedy in Three Acts, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
