Chapter 3 of Plain Tales from the Hills is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Plain Tales from the Hills is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished. It had not the least effect on us. Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings. Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too. A woman values that.”
Chapter 3 of Plain Tales from the Hills is here in full — 176 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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.
possessive form of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading “Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings.”
inflected form of “drink” — take in liquids
From this reading “I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.”
the item at the end
From this reading “Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.”
fasten with a lock
From this reading “Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.”
a small ornamental case; usually contains a picture or a lock of hair and is worn on a necklace
From this reading “Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings.”
gymnastic apparatus consisting of a pair of heavy metal circles (usually covered with leather) suspended by ropes; used for gymnastic exercises
From this reading “Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings.”
beliefs of a person or social group in which they have an emotional investment (either for or against something)
From this reading “A woman values that.””
a liquor made from fermented mash of grain
From this reading “I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.”
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 Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
possessive form of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings.
inflected form of “drink” — take in liquids
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon
From this reading It had not the least effect on us.
(of materials or goods) brought to the desired final state
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It had not the least effect on us.
a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss
From this reading Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It had not the least effect on us.
the item at the end
From this reading Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.
the superlative of “little” that can be used with mass nouns and is usually preceded by “the”; a quantifier meaning smallest in amount or extent or degree
From this reading It had not the least effect on us.
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
fasten with a lock
From this reading Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.
a small ornamental case; usually contains a picture or a lock of hair and is worn on a necklace
From this reading Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings.
of greater importance or stature or rank
From this reading Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It had not the least effect on us.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading It had not the least effect on us.
gymnastic apparatus consisting of a pair of heavy metal circles (usually covered with leather) suspended by ropes; used for gymnastic exercises
From this reading Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.
express in words
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
cause to go somewhere
From this reading Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading A woman values that.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading Lastly, the Major said: “We must send a lock of hair too.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading It had not the least effect on us.
beliefs of a person or social group in which they have an emotional investment (either for or against something)
From this reading A woman values that.”
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
look attentively
From this reading Then we took off The Boy's watch, locket, and rings.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
a liquor made from fermented mash of grain
From this reading I am afraid to say how much whiskey we drank before the letter was finished.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading A woman values that.”
Chapter 3 of Plain Tales from the Hills by Rudyard Kipling holds 176 sentences, grouped into 36 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 3 holds 176 sentences of Plain Tales from the Hills, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Plain Tales from the Hills by Rudyard Kipling exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 176 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 3 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 Plain Tales from the Hills by Rudyard Kipling on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3876 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1858 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1858, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 323 minutes of reading across 776 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Plain Tales from the Hills section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 22 chapters of Plain Tales from the Hills 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 Plain Tales from the Hills, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
