Chapter 4 of Sans-Cravate is here in full — 379 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Sans-Cravate is here in full — 379 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles." "So we perceive." Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture: "Why doesn't that messenger come?" "Neither of them has come yet."
Chapter 4 of Sans-Cravate is here in full — 379 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/75 · 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.
prince consort of Queen Victoria of England (1819-1861)
From this reading “Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:”
past form of “consult” — get or ask advice from
From this reading “Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:”
motion of hands or body to emphasize or help to express a thought or feeling
From this reading “Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:”
restless or short-tempered under delay or opposition
From this reading “Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:”
a person who carries a message
From this reading “"Why doesn't that messenger come?"”
plural of “monsieur” — used as a French courtesy title; equivalent to English “Mr”
From this reading “"You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles."”
to become aware of through the senses
From this reading “"So we perceive."”
plural of “truffle” — any of various highly prized edible subterranean fungi of the genus Tuber; grow naturally in southwestern Europe
From this reading “"You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles."”
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 “Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:”
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.
prince consort of Queen Victoria of England (1819-1861)
From this reading Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading "You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles."
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading "Why doesn't that messenger come?"
past form of “consult” — get or ask advice from
From this reading Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Why doesn't that messenger come?"
having or displaying warmth or affection
From this reading "You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles."
motion of hands or body to emphasize or help to express a thought or feeling
From this reading Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Neither of them has come yet."
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles."
restless or short-tempered under delay or opposition
From this reading Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:
a person who carries a message
From this reading "Why doesn't that messenger come?"
plural of “monsieur” — used as a French courtesy title; equivalent to English “Mr”
From this reading "You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles."
not one and not the other of two
From this reading "Neither of them has come yet."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles."
to become aware of through the senses
From this reading "So we perceive."
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles."
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "So we perceive."
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Why doesn't that messenger come?"
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading "Neither of them has come yet."
plural of “truffle” — any of various highly prized edible subterranean fungi of the genus Tuber; grow naturally in southwestern Europe
From this reading "You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles."
precisely as stated
From this reading "You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles."
look attentively
From this reading Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "So we perceive."
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "Why doesn't that messenger come?"
in the company of; together with
From this reading Albert consulted his watch, and said, with an impatient gesture:
but in spite of that
From this reading "Neither of them has come yet."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You see, messieurs, I am very fond of truffles."
Chapter 4 of Sans-Cravate by Paul de Kock holds 379 sentences, grouped into 76 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 379 sentences of Sans-Cravate, unabridged, divided into 76 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Sans-Cravate by Paul de Kock exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 379 sentences, grouped into 76 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 76 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 76 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 Sans-Cravate by Paul de Kock on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 11584 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #38001 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #38001, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2317 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Sans-Cravate section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 29 chapters of Sans-Cravate 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 Sans-Cravate, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
