Chapter 1 of Plays : First Series is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Plays : First Series is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Electric light is burning. On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box. It is past midnight. A fumbling is heard outside the door. It is opened suddenly; JACK BARTHWICK seems to fall into the room.
Chapter 1 of Plays : First Series is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 4/79 · 5 reading units · Lines 16–20
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.
the act of burning something
From this reading “Electric light is burning.”
using or providing or producing or transmitting or operated by electricity
From this reading “Electric light is burning.”
showing lack of skill or aptitude
From this reading “A fumbling is heard outside the door.”
12 o'clock at night; the middle of the night
From this reading “It is past midnight.”
a soft white precious univalent metallic element having the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal; occurs in argentite and in free form; used in coins and jewelry and tableware and photography
From this reading “On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.”
a tube running from the liquid in a vessel to a lower level outside the vessel so that gravity forces the liquid through the tube
From this reading “On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.”
an open receptacle for holding or displaying or serving articles or food
From this reading “On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.”
a liquor made from fermented mash of grain
From this reading “On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.”
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 On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It is opened suddenly; JACK BARTHWICK seems to fall into the room.
the act of burning something
From this reading Electric light is burning.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading A fumbling is heard outside the door.
using or providing or producing or transmitting or operated by electricity
From this reading Electric light is burning.
descend in free fall under the influence of gravity
From this reading It is opened suddenly; JACK BARTHWICK seems to fall into the room.
showing lack of skill or aptitude
From this reading A fumbling is heard outside the door.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading A fumbling is heard outside the door.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading It is opened suddenly; JACK BARTHWICK seems to fall into the room.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Electric light is burning.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It is past midnight.
a small worthless amount
From this reading It is opened suddenly; JACK BARTHWICK seems to fall into the room.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading Electric light is burning.
12 o'clock at night; the middle of the night
From this reading It is past midnight.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading It is opened suddenly; JACK BARTHWICK seems to fall into the room.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading A fumbling is heard outside the door.
the time that has elapsed
From this reading It is past midnight.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading It is opened suddenly; JACK BARTHWICK seems to fall into the room.
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading It is opened suddenly; JACK BARTHWICK seems to fall into the room.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
a soft white precious univalent metallic element having the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal; occurs in argentite and in free form; used in coins and jewelry and tableware and photography
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading It is opened suddenly; JACK BARTHWICK seems to fall into the room.
a tube running from the liquid in a vessel to a lower level outside the vessel so that gravity forces the liquid through the tube
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It is opened suddenly; JACK BARTHWICK seems to fall into the room.
an open receptacle for holding or displaying or serving articles or food
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
a liquor made from fermented mash of grain
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
in the company of; together with
From this reading On the large round dining-table is set out a tray with whisky, a syphon, and a silver cigarette-box.
Chapter 1 of Plays : First Series by John Galsworthy holds 399 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 1 holds 399 sentences of Plays : First Series, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Plays : First Series by John Galsworthy exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 399 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 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 Plays : First Series by John Galsworthy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Plays : First Series section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Plays : First Series 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 Plays : First Series, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
