Chapter 4 of Raw Material is here in full — 430 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Raw Material is here in full — 430 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by. It takes all the fresh out of it. I only ironed them yesterday.” “Why, Maria, whistling! Like a little street boy!”
Chapter 4 of Raw Material is here in full — 430 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/86 · 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.
hanging cloth used as a blind (especially for a window)
From this reading ““Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by.”
recently made, produced, or harvested
From this reading “It takes all the fresh out of it.”
(of linens or clothes) smoothed with a hot iron
From this reading “I only ironed them yesterday.””
a dark region of considerable extent on the surface of the moon
From this reading ““Why, Maria, whistling!”
plural of “take” — the income or profit arising from such transactions as the sale of land or other property
From this reading “It takes all the fresh out of it.”
make an uncontrolled, short, jerky motion
From this reading ““Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by.”
the sound made by something moving rapidly or by steam coming out of a small aperture
From this reading ““Why, Maria, whistling!”
the day immediately before today
From this reading “I only ironed them yesterday.””
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 Like a little street boy!”
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading It takes all the fresh out of it.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by.
a youthful male person
From this reading Like a little street boy!”
showing who or what does the action
From this reading “Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by.
hanging cloth used as a blind (especially for a window)
From this reading “Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by.
recently made, produced, or harvested
From this reading It takes all the fresh out of it.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading “Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I only ironed them yesterday.”
(of linens or clothes) smoothed with a hot iron
From this reading I only ironed them yesterday.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It takes all the fresh out of it.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Like a little street boy!”
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Like a little street boy!”
a dark region of considerable extent on the surface of the moon
From this reading “Why, Maria, whistling!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It takes all the fresh out of it.
and nothing more
From this reading I only ironed them yesterday.”
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading It takes all the fresh out of it.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by.
a thoroughfare (usually including sidewalks) that is lined with buildings
From this reading Like a little street boy!”
plural of “take” — the income or profit arising from such transactions as the sale of land or other property
From this reading It takes all the fresh out of it.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading I only ironed them yesterday.”
make an uncontrolled, short, jerky motion
From this reading “Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by.
the sound made by something moving rapidly or by steam coming out of a small aperture
From this reading “Why, Maria, whistling!
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading “Why, Maria, whistling!
the day immediately before today
From this reading I only ironed them yesterday.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Don’t twitch the curtain so as you go by.
Chapter 4 of Raw Material by Dorothy Canfield Fisher holds 430 sentences, grouped into 86 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 4 holds 430 sentences of Raw Material, unabridged, divided into 86 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Raw Material by Dorothy Canfield Fisher exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 430 sentences, grouped into 86 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 86 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 86 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 Raw Material by Dorothy Canfield Fisher on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2584 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #66258 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #66258, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 215 minutes of reading across 517 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Raw Material section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of Raw Material 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 Raw Material, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
