Chapter 1 of Ruth Erskine's Crosses is here in full — 187 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Ruth Erskine's Crosses is here in full — 187 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc. PANSY TRADE-MARK REGISTERED JUNE 4, 1895. SHE stood in the hall, waiting. She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside. She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.
Chapter 1 of Ruth Erskine's Crosses is here in full — 187 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/37 · 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.
the operator of a motor vehicle
From this reading “She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.”
organic compound formed by reaction between an acid and an alcohol with elimination of water
From this reading “BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.”
large-flowered garden plant derived chiefly from the wild pansy of Europe and having velvety petals of various colors
From this reading “BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.”
the paved surface of a thoroughfare
From this reading “She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.”
a person employed to carry luggage and supplies
From this reading “She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.”
(of animals) officially recorded with or certified by a recognized breed association; especially in a stud book
From this reading “PANSY TRADE-MARK REGISTERED JUNE 4, 1895.”
make a dull sound
From this reading “She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.”
(used in the plural) trousers that end at or above the knee
From this reading “She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.”
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.
In this reading “She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.”
In this reading “She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.”
a reception held in your own home
In this reading “BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.”
In this reading “She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.”
In this reading “SHE stood in the hall, waiting.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PANSY TRADE-MARK REGISTERED JUNE 4, 1895.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PANSY TRADE-MARK REGISTERED JUNE 4, 1895.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
the operator of a motor vehicle
From this reading She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.
organic compound formed by reaction between an acid and an alcohol with elimination of water
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
possessive form of “father” — a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
the act of giving
From this reading She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading SHE stood in the hall, waiting.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading SHE stood in the hall, waiting.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
the month following May and preceding July
From this reading PANSY TRADE-MARK REGISTERED JUNE 4, 1895.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.
plural of “order” — (often plural) a command given by a superior (e.g., a military or law enforcement officer) that must be obeyed
From this reading She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.
large-flowered garden plant derived chiefly from the wild pansy of Europe and having velvety petals of various colors
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
the paved surface of a thoroughfare
From this reading She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.
a person employed to carry luggage and supplies
From this reading She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.
(of animals) officially recorded with or certified by a recognized breed association; especially in a stud book
From this reading PANSY TRADE-MARK REGISTERED JUNE 4, 1895.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BY PANSY Author of “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” “Four Girls at Chautauqua,” “Chautauqua Girls at Home,” etc.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading SHE stood in the hall, waiting.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading SHE stood in the hall, waiting.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading SHE stood in the hall, waiting.
make a dull sound
From this reading She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PANSY TRADE-MARK REGISTERED JUNE 4, 1895.
(used in the plural) trousers that end at or above the knee
From this reading She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She heard the thud of trunks and valises on the pavement outside.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading She heard her father’s voice giving orders to driver and porter.
the act of waiting (remaining inactive in one place while expecting something)
From this reading SHE stood in the hall, waiting.
Chapter 1 of Ruth Erskine's Crosses by Pansy holds 187 sentences, grouped into 38 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 1 holds 187 sentences of Ruth Erskine's Crosses, unabridged, divided into 38 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Ruth Erskine's Crosses by Pansy exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 187 sentences, grouped into 38 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 38 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 38 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 1 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 Ruth Erskine's Crosses by Pansy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4147 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #54078 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #54078, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 345 minutes of reading across 830 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Ruth Erskine's Crosses section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of Ruth Erskine's Crosses 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 Ruth Erskine's Crosses, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
