Chapter 3 of Ranson's Folly is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Ranson's Folly is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“To-night?” “There's no time by day. Go to bed.” For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below. Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
Chapter 3 of Ranson's Folly is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
not in a state of sleep; completely conscious
From this reading “For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.”
psychological suffering
From this reading “Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.”
facing or experiencing financial trouble or difficulty
From this reading “Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.”
evidencing the possession of inside information
From this reading “Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.”
the act of hearing attentively
From this reading “For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.”
in motion
From this reading “For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.”
(of quantities) imprecise but fairly close to correct
From this reading “Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.”
do one's shopping
From this reading “For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
not in a state of sleep; completely conscious
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading Go to bed.”
earlier than; in front of
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
at or to a lower level than something
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading “There's no time by day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading “There's no time by day.
psychological suffering
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
facing or experiencing financial trouble or difficulty
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Go to bed.”
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
evidencing the possession of inside information
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
the act of hearing attentively
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
in motion
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
not any; not one
From this reading “There's no time by day.
(of quantities) imprecise but fairly close to correct
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
do one's shopping
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
uttered through the medium of speech or characterized by speech; sometimes used in combination
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading For nearly an hour Miss Cahill lay awake listening to her father moving about in the shop below.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “There's no time by day.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading “There's no time by day.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Go to bed.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “To-night?”
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Never before had he spoken roughly to her, and she, knowing how much the thought that he had done so would distress him, was herself distressed.
Chapter 3 of Ranson's Folly by Richard Harding Davis holds 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 406 sentences of Ranson's Folly, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Ranson's Folly by Richard Harding Davis exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 Ranson's Folly by Richard Harding Davis on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4469 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #5643 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #5643, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 372 minutes of reading across 894 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Ranson's Folly section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of Ranson's Folly 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 Ranson's Folly, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
