Chapter 4 of Ragged Lady — Complete is here in full — 420 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Ragged Lady — Complete is here in full — 420 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The clerk had a moment of bitterness. “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.” “That's to be seen. I shall tell her, now. I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
Chapter 4 of Ragged Lady — Complete is here in full — 420 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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 feeling of deep and bitter anger and ill-will
From this reading “The clerk had a moment of bitterness.”
an employee who performs clerical work (e.g., keeps records or accounts)
From this reading “The clerk had a moment of bitterness.”
-ing form of “do” — engage in
From this reading “I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.””
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading ““If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.””
the lack of knowledge or education
From this reading “I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.””
apprehended with certainty
From this reading ““If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.””
inflected form of “mean” — mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading “I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.””
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth
From this reading “I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.””
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 The clerk had a moment of bitterness.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “That's to be seen.
for the reason that
From this reading I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
a feeling of deep and bitter anger and ill-will
From this reading The clerk had a moment of bitterness.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
an employee who performs clerical work (e.g., keeps records or accounts)
From this reading The clerk had a moment of bitterness.
-ing form of “do” — engage in
From this reading I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The clerk had a moment of bitterness.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading I shall tell her, now.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I shall tell her, now.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
the lack of knowledge or education
From this reading I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
apprehended with certainty
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
inflected form of “mean” — mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
a particular point in time
From this reading The clerk had a moment of bitterness.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading I shall tell her, now.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The clerk had a moment of bitterness.
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading “That's to be seen.
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading I shall tell her, now.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
express in words
From this reading I shall tell her, now.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “That's to be seen.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The clerk had a moment of bitterness.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “That's to be seen.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth
From this reading I never meant her to know, but she must, because she's doing you wrong in her ignorance.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “If she'd known it was you, she wouldn't have given them back.”
Chapter 4 of Ragged Lady — Complete by William Dean Howells holds 420 sentences, grouped into 84 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 4 holds 420 sentences of Ragged Lady — Complete, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Ragged Lady — Complete by William Dean Howells exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 420 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 4 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 Ragged Lady — Complete by William Dean Howells on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4981 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #4270 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #4270, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 415 minutes of reading across 997 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Ragged Lady — Complete section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of Ragged Lady — Complete 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 Ragged Lady — Complete, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
