Chapter 26 of Possession is here in full — 386 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVI
Chapter 26 of Possession is here in full — 386 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Perhaps the baby....” And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked. “Perhaps the baby will change things.” Then she leaned forward and patted Ellen’s hand. “Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....
Chapter 26 of Possession is here in full — 386 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/77 · 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.
a very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk
From this reading ““Perhaps the baby....””
cause to change; make different; cause a transformation
From this reading ““Perhaps the baby will change things.””
a special loved one
From this reading ““Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....”
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading “And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.”
of concern to or concerning the affairs of other nations (other than your own)
From this reading “And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.”
past form of “lean” — to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading “Then she leaned forward and patted Ellen’s hand.”
inflected form of “pat” — pat or squeeze fondly or playfully, especially under the chin
From this reading “Then she leaned forward and patted Ellen’s hand.”
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading “And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.”
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.
In this reading “Then she leaned forward and patted Ellen’s hand.”
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 And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
a very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk
From this reading “Perhaps the baby....”
cause to change; make different; cause a transformation
From this reading “Perhaps the baby will change things.”
a special loved one
From this reading “Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Then she leaned forward and patted Ellen’s hand.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
of concern to or concerning the affairs of other nations (other than your own)
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
at or to or toward the front
From this reading Then she leaned forward and patted Ellen’s hand.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Then she leaned forward and patted Ellen’s hand.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....
past form of “lean” — to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading Then she leaned forward and patted Ellen’s hand.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading “Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading “Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
inflected form of “pat” — pat or squeeze fondly or playfully, especially under the chin
From this reading Then she leaned forward and patted Ellen’s hand.
by chance
From this reading “Perhaps the baby....”
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Then she leaned forward and patted Ellen’s hand.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
express in speech
From this reading “Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Perhaps the baby....”
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then she leaned forward and patted Ellen’s hand.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading “Perhaps the baby will change things.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And Thérèse put her head on one side in a queer foreign fashion and smirked.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading “Perhaps the baby will change things.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Never mind, we won’t speak of it now, my darling....
Chapter 26 of Possession by Louis Bromfield holds 386 sentences, grouped into 78 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 26 holds 386 sentences of Possession, unabridged, divided into 78 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 26 of Possession by Louis Bromfield exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 386 sentences, grouped into 78 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 78 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 78 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 26 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 Possession by Louis Bromfield 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 Possession section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of Possession 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 Possession, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
