Chapter 23 of Romance is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of Romance is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I said much more than this. I was eloquent. I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety. The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim. It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.
Chapter 23 of Romance is here in full — 411 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
past form of “allow” — make it possible through a specific action or lack of action for something to happen
From this reading “It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.”
expressing yourself readily, clearly, effectively
From this reading “I was eloquent.”
the condition of being free; the power to act or speak or think without externally imposed restraints
From this reading “I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.”
stupefied or excited by a chemical substance (especially alcohol)
From this reading “I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.”
roused to anger
From this reading “It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.”
the state of being certain that adverse effects will not be caused by some agent under defined conditions
From this reading “I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.”
travel through water
From this reading “The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.”
a source of difficulty
From this reading “The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.”
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 thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
(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 The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
past form of “allow” — make it possible through a specific action or lack of action for something to happen
From this reading It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
inflected form of “become” — enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
expressing yourself readily, clearly, effectively
From this reading I was eloquent.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
the condition of being free; the power to act or speak or think without externally imposed restraints
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
the locus of feelings and intuitions
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
a period of time assigned for work
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I said much more than this.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
stupefied or excited by a chemical substance (especially alcohol)
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.
roused to anger
From this reading It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading I said much more than this.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading I said much more than this.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
the spatial property resulting from a relatively small distance
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
the state of being certain that adverse effects will not be caused by some agent under defined conditions
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading I said much more than this.
a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
travel through water
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading I said much more than this.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I became as if suddenly intoxicated by the nearness of freedom and safety.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading I said much more than this.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It seemed to me I should go mad if I was not allowed to go.
a source of difficulty
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was eloquent.
in the company of; together with
From this reading The thought of being at sea with her in a few hours away from all trouble of mind or heart, made my head swim.
Chapter 23 of Romance by Joseph Conrad holds 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 23 holds 411 sentences of Romance, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of Romance by Joseph Conrad exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 411 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 23 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 Romance by Joseph Conrad on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 11053 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #17642 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #17642, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2211 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Romance section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 27 chapters of Romance 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 Romance, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
