Chapter 1 of Peter Biddulph is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Peter Biddulph is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Peter Biddulph, by W.H.G. Kingston. Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames. But the father dies, and Peter and his mother are destitute. She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side. The boys who did this used to be called mudlarks.
Chapter 1 of Peter Biddulph is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
push one's way
From this reading “Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.”
the act of making something clean
From this reading “She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side.”
poor enough to need help from others
From this reading “But the father dies, and Peter and his mother are destitute.”
plural of “die” — a small cube with 1 to 6 spots on the six faces; used in gambling to generate random numbers
From this reading “But the father dies, and Peter and his mother are destitute.”
additional unspecified odds and ends; more of the same
From this reading “She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side.”
a town on the Hudson River in New York
From this reading “Peter Biddulph, by W.H.G. Kingston.”
possessive form of “peter” — 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's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.”
the longest river in England; flows eastward through London to the North Sea
From this reading “Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.”
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 Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading But the father dies, and Peter and his mother are destitute.
push one's way
From this reading Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading The boys who did this used to be called mudlarks.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Peter Biddulph, by W.H.G. Kingston.
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading The boys who did this used to be called mudlarks.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But the father dies, and Peter and his mother are destitute.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Peter Biddulph, by W.H.G. Kingston.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading The boys who did this used to be called mudlarks.
the act of making something clean
From this reading She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side.
poor enough to need help from others
From this reading But the father dies, and Peter and his mother are destitute.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading The boys who did this used to be called mudlarks.
plural of “die” — a small cube with 1 to 6 spots on the six faces; used in gambling to generate random numbers
From this reading But the father dies, and Peter and his mother are destitute.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side.
additional unspecified odds and ends; more of the same
From this reading She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
a metric unit of weight equal to one thousandth of a kilogram
From this reading Peter Biddulph, by W.H.G. Kingston.
plural of “go” — a time period for working (after which you will be relieved by someone else)
From this reading She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side.
a nonmetallic univalent element that is normally a colorless and odorless highly flammable diatomic gas; the simplest and lightest and most abundant element in the universe
From this reading Peter Biddulph, by W.H.G. Kingston.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading But the father dies, and Peter and his mother are destitute.
a town on the Hudson River in New York
From this reading Peter Biddulph, by W.H.G. Kingston.
the capital and largest city of England; located on the Thames in southeastern England; financial and industrial and cultural center
From this reading Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The boys who did this used to be called mudlarks.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
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 Biddulph, by W.H.G. Kingston.
possessive form of “peter” — 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's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
a large natural stream of water (larger than a creek)
From this reading Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side.
the longest river in England; flows eastward through London to the North Sea
From this reading Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading The boys who did this used to be called mudlarks.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She goes out to do cleaning etcetera, and Peter scavenges by the river-side.
employed in accomplishing something
From this reading The boys who did this used to be called mudlarks.
a heavy grey-white metallic element; the pure form is used mainly in electrical applications; it is found in several ores including wolframite and scheelite
From this reading Peter Biddulph, by W.H.G. Kingston.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Peter's mother and father were barge people on the London river, the Thames.
which person or people
From this reading The boys who did this used to be called mudlarks.
Chapter 1 of Peter Biddulph by William Henry Giles Kingston holds 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 419 sentences of Peter Biddulph, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Peter Biddulph by William Henry Giles Kingston exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 Peter Biddulph by William Henry Giles Kingston on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1257 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #23050 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #23050, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 104 minutes of reading across 252 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Peter Biddulph section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 3 chapters of Peter Biddulph 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 Peter Biddulph, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
