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Rogues and Vagabonds

Chapter XXXIX · Gertie’s Bible

Chapter XXXIX of Rogues and Vagabonds, “Gertie’s Bible,” is here in full — 128 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By George R. (George Robert) Sims • Curated US English Learning Edition

Cover illustration for Rogues and Vagabonds

English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

Gertie had been with her grandfather all the afternoon.

Much had been said.

Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

Narrator

Speed 0.75x

AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English

LEARNER DICTIONARY

Archivist

/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter XXXIX Reading 1/25

Rogues and Vagabonds George R. (George Robert) Sims

Cover illustration for Rogues and Vagabonds

Chapter XXXIX

Gertie’s Bible

Chapter XXXIX of Rogues and Vagabonds, “Gertie’s Bible,” is here in full — 128 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers. It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man. Gertie had been with her grandfather all the afternoon. Much had been said. Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

Rogues and Vagabonds

Chapter XXXIX · Gertie’s Bible

Chapter XXXIX of Rogues and Vagabonds, “Gertie’s Bible,” is here in full — 128 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/25 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

Line 2

It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

Line 3

Gertie had been with her grandfather all the afternoon.

Line 4

Much had been said.

/mʌtʃ hæd bɪn sed/

Line 5

Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

Learner Dictionary

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.

bedside noun US /ˈbedsaɪd/

space by the side of a bed (especially the bed of a sick or dying person)

From this reading “Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.”

grandfather noun US /ˈɡrændfɑːðər/

the father of your father or mother

From this reading “Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.”

hers pronoun US /hərz/

the one or ones belonging to her

From this reading “Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.”

prostrate verb US /ˈprɑːstreɪt/

get into a prostrate position, as in submission

From this reading “It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.”

streamed verb US /striːmd/

past form of “stream” — to extend, wave or float outward, as if in the wind

From this reading “It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.”

suffering noun US /ˈsʌfərɪŋ/

a state of acute pain

From this reading “It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.”

sympathy noun US /ˈsɪmpəθi/

an inclination to support or be loyal to or to agree with an opinion

From this reading “It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.”

trembling noun US /ˈtrembəlɪŋ/

a shaky motion

From this reading “Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.”

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

trembling hands noun + noun

In this reading “Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.”

fell upon verb + particle

In this reading “It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.”

old man adjective + noun

a man who is very old

In this reading “Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.”

by the bedside preposition + article + noun counted as “by … bedside”

In this reading “Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.”

come back verb + particle

be restored

In this reading “Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.”

light streamed adjective + noun counted as “light stream”

In this reading “It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.”

All words in this reading · 68

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

afternoonnounUS /ˌæftərˈnuːn/

the part of the day between noon and evening

From this reading Gertie had been with her grandfather all the afternoon.

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(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 Gertie had been with her grandfather all the afternoon.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

anyadjectiveUS /ˈeni/

one or some or every or all without specification

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

awayadverbUS /əˈweɪ/

from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

backadverbUS /bæk/

in or to or toward a former location

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

bedsidenounUS /ˈbedsaɪd/

space by the side of a bed (especially the bed of a sick or dying person)

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading Gertie had been with her grandfather all the afternoon.

bentnounUS /bent/

a relatively permanent inclination to react in a particular way

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

brightadjectiveUS /braɪt/

emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

comeverbUS /kʌm/

move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

curtainedadjective

furnished or concealed with curtains or draperies

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

daynounUS /deɪ/

time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

facenounUS /feɪs/

the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

fairadjectiveUS /fer/

free from favoritism or self-interest or bias or deception; conforming with established standards or rules

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

fellverbUS /fel/

cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

gentleadjectiveUS /ˈdʒentəl/

soft and mild; not harsh or stern or severe

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

Gertie

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

goneadjectiveUS /ɡɔːn/

destroyed or killed

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

grandfathernounUS /ˈɡrændfɑːðər/

the father of your father or mother

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading Gertie had been with her grandfather all the afternoon.

handsnounUS /hændz/

(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

heardadjectiveUS /hɜːrd/

detected or perceived by the sense of hearing

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

Heckett

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

herspronounUS /hərz/

the one or ones belonging to her

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

historynounUS /ˈhɪstəri/

the aggregate of past events

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

holdingnounUS /ˈhoʊldɪŋ/

the act of retaining something

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

how

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

lateradverbUS /ˈleɪtər/

happening at a time subsequent to a reference time

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

lifenounUS /laɪf/

a characteristic state or mode of living

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

lightadjectiveUS /laɪt/

of comparatively little physical weight or density

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

mannounUS /mæn/

an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

moreadjectiveUS /mɔːr/

(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

MuchadverbUS /mʌtʃ/

to a great degree or extent

From this reading Much had been said.

neveradverbUS /ˈnevər/

not ever; at no time in the past or future

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

oldadjectiveUS /oʊld/

(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

onceadverbUS /wʌns/

on one occasion

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

overprepositionUS /ˈoʊvər/

above and across; more than

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

prostrateverbUS /ˈprɑːstreɪt/

get into a prostrate position, as in submission

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

saidadjectiveUS /sed/

being the one previously mentioned or spoken of

From this reading Much had been said.

satnounUS /sæt/

the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

simpleadjectiveUS /ˈsɪmpəl/

having few parts; not complex or complicated or involved

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

streamedverbUS /striːmd/

past form of “stream” — to extend, wave or float outward, as if in the wind

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

sufferingnounUS /ˈsʌfərɪŋ/

a state of acute pain

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

sunshiny

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

sympathynounUS /ˈsɪmpəθi/

an inclination to support or be loyal to or to agree with an opinion

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

thinadjectiveUS /θɪn/

Having little thickness or extent.

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

throughprepositionUS /θruː/

from one end or side of something to the other

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

toldverbUS /toʊld/

inflected form of “tell” — express in words

From this reading Gertie had told the old man the simple history of her later life, and how she had heard once that he had gone away never to come back any more.

tremblingnounUS /ˈtrembəlɪŋ/

a shaky motion

From this reading Gertie Heckett sat by the bedside of her grandfather, holding his thin, trembling hands in hers.

uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/

a formal word for “on”

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

windownounUS /ˈwɪndoʊ/

a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading Gertie had been with her grandfather all the afternoon.

youngadjectiveUS /jʌŋ/

(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth

From this reading It was a bright sunshiny day, and the light streamed in through the curtained window and fell upon the fair young face as it bent in gentle sympathy over the prostrate and suffering man.

Chapter 39 of Rogues and Vagabonds by George R. (George Robert) Sims holds 128 sentences, grouped into 26 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.

What does chapter 39 of Rogues and Vagabonds contain?

Chapter 39 holds 128 sentences of Rogues and Vagabonds, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 39 of Rogues and Vagabonds by George R. (George Robert) Sims exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 128 sentences, grouped into 26 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.

How do I study chapter 39 of Rogues and Vagabonds?

Work through the 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 26 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.

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Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 39 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.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #46443, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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Vocabulary met early in Rogues and Vagabonds

Words and structures a reader meets early in Rogues and Vagabonds, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Going: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rogues and Vagabonds; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Cloudless: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rogues and Vagabonds; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Heavens: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rogues and Vagabonds; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Waves: A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rogues and Vagabonds; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.