Chapter 15 of Psyche is here in full — 192 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of Psyche is here in full — 192 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Psyche had a secret. Why did she not tell it? She did not know. She could not, after having once kept silent. She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.
Chapter 15 of Psyche is here in full — 192 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/38 · 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.
-ing form of “do” — engage in
From this reading “She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.”
the -ing form of “have”
From this reading “She could not, after having once kept silent.”
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading “She could not, after having once kept silent.”
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.”
that which is responsible for one's thoughts, feelings, and conscious brain functions; the seat of the faculty of reason
From this reading “Psyche had a secret.”
Something that is kept or meant to be kept unknown or unseen by others.
From this reading “Psyche had a secret.”
marked by absence of sound
From this reading “She could not, after having once kept silent.”
express in speech
From this reading “She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.”
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.
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 Psyche had a secret.
later than; following
From this reading She could not, after having once kept silent.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading She could not, after having once kept silent.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Why did she not tell it?
-ing form of “do” — engage in
From this reading She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Psyche had a secret.
the -ing form of “have”
From this reading She could not, after having once kept silent.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Why did she not tell it?
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading She could not, after having once kept silent.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading She did not know.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Why did she not tell it?
on one occasion
From this reading She could not, after having once kept silent.
that which is responsible for one's thoughts, feelings, and conscious brain functions; the seat of the faculty of reason
From this reading Psyche had a secret.
precisely, exactly
From this reading She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.
Something that is kept or meant to be kept unknown or unseen by others.
From this reading Psyche had a secret.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Why did she not tell it?
marked by absence of sound
From this reading She could not, after having once kept silent.
express in speech
From this reading She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.
express in words
From this reading Why did she not tell it?
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading Why did she not tell it?
but in spite of that
From this reading She knew that she was not doing right by being silent, and yet she did not speak.
Chapter 15 of Psyche by Louis Couperus holds 192 sentences, grouped into 39 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 15 holds 192 sentences of Psyche, unabridged, divided into 39 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of Psyche by Louis Couperus exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 192 sentences, grouped into 39 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 39 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 39 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 15 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 Psyche by Louis Couperus on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2630 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #38005 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #38005, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 219 minutes of reading across 526 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Psyche section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 27 chapters of Psyche 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 Psyche, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
