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Sans-Cravate
Sans-Cravate

Chapter XI

Chapter 11 of Sans-Cravate is here in full — 379 sentences across 76 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Sans-Cravate
Context Illustration Reading 1/75 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.
"Good-morning! how are you?"
"Very well."
"And the love affairs?"
"Oh! not in bad shape."
0:00 / 0:00
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Sans-Cravate

Chapter XI

Chapter 11 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

Line 1
He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.
Line 2
"Good-morning! how are you?"
Line 3
"Very well."
/ˈveri wel/
Line 4
"And the love affairs?"
/ənd ðə lʌv əˈferz/
Line 5
"Oh! not in bad shape."
/oʊ nɑːt ɪn bæd ʃeɪp/

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.

affairs noun US /əˈferz/

matters of personal concern

From this reading “"And the love affairs?"”

Boulevard noun US /ˈbʊləvɑːrd/

a wide street or thoroughfare

From this reading “He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.”

cigar noun US /sɪˈɡɑːr/

a roll of tobacco for smoking

From this reading “He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.”

des noun US /des/

a potent estrogen used in medicine and in feed for livestock and poultry

From this reading “He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.”

Madame noun US /ˈmædəm/

title used for a married Frenchwoman

From this reading “He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.”

musing noun US /ˈmjuːzɪŋ/

a calm, lengthy, intent consideration

From this reading “He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.”

shape noun US /ʃeɪp/

any spatial attributes (especially as defined by outline)

From this reading “"Oh! not in bad shape."”

spied verb US /spaɪd/

inflected form of “spy” — catch sight of

From this reading “He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.”

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.

along the Boulevard preposition + article + noun counted as “along … boulevard”

In this reading “He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.”

at once preposition + adverb

without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening

In this reading “He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.”

love affairs noun + noun

In this reading “"And the love affairs?"”

bad shape adjective + noun

In this reading “"Oh! not in bad shape."”

All words in this reading · 53

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 He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

affairsnounUS /əˈferz/

matters of personal concern

From this reading "And the love affairs?"

alongprepositionUS /əˈlɔːŋ/

following the length of something from one end toward the other

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

areauxiliary verbUS /ɑːr/

the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading "Good-morning! how are you?"

asconjunctionUS /æz/

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

badadjectiveUS /bæd/

having undesirable or negative qualities

From this reading "Oh! not in bad shape."

Baldimer

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

BoulevardnounUS /ˈbʊləvɑːrd/

a wide street or thoroughfare

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

cameverbUS /keɪm/

inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

cigarnounUS /sɪˈɡɑːr/

a roll of tobacco for smoking

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

Célestin

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

daynounUS /deɪ/

time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

desnounUS /des/

a potent estrogen used in medicine and in feed for livestock and poultry

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

followingadjectiveUS /ˈfɑːloʊɪŋ/

about to be mentioned or specified

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

friendnounUS /frend/

a person you know well and regard with affection and trust

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

Good-morning

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

From this reading "Good-morning! how are you?"

handnounUS /hænd/

the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

HepronounUS /hiː/

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

heldadjectiveUS /held/

occupied or in the control of; often used in combination

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

how

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

From this reading "Good-morning! how are you?"

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

Italiens

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

lovenounUS /lʌv/

a strong positive emotion of regard and affection

From this reading "And the love affairs?"

MadamenounUS /ˈmædəm/

title used for a married Frenchwoman

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

meetverbUS /miːt/

come together

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

mouthnounUS /maʊθ/

the opening through which food is taken in and vocalizations emerge

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

musingnounUS /ˈmjuːzɪŋ/

a calm, lengthy, intent consideration

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading "Oh! not in bad shape."

OhnounUS /oʊ/

a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region

From this reading "Oh! not in bad shape."

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

onceadverbUS /wʌns/

on one occasion

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

outadjectiveUS /aʊt/

not allowed to continue to bat or run

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

sauntered

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

shapenounUS /ʃeɪp/

any spatial attributes (especially as defined by outline)

From this reading "Oh! not in bad shape."

spiedverbUS /spaɪd/

inflected form of “spy” — catch sight of

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

subjectnounUS /səbˈdʒekt/

the subject matter of a conversation or discussion

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/

a formal word for “on”

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

usualadjectiveUS /ˈjuːʒəwəl/

occurring or encountered or experienced or observed frequently or in accordance with regular practice or procedure

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

VeryadjectiveUS /ˈveri/

precisely as stated

From this reading "Very well."

visitverbUS /ˈvɪzɪt/

go to see a place, as for entertainment

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

welladverbUS /wel/

(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)

From this reading "Very well."

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading He was musing upon this subject on the day following his visit to Madame Baldimer, as he sauntered along the Boulevard des Italiens, as usual, with a cigar in his mouth, when he spied his friend Célestin, who at once came to meet him and held out his hand.

youpronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading "Good-morning! how are you?"

Chapter 11 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.

What does chapter 11 of Sans-Cravate contain?

Chapter 11 holds 379 sentences of Sans-Cravate, unabridged, divided into 76 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 11 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.

How do I study chapter 11 of Sans-Cravate?

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.

Can chapter 11 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 11 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.

Questions about reading Sans-Cravate

Common questions about reading Sans-Cravate by Paul de Kock on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Sans-Cravate?

Yes. All 11584 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #38001 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Sans-Cravate is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #38001, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Sans-Cravate take to read?

About 600 minutes of reading across 2317 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Sans-Cravate section by section

How to work through Sans-Cravate section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

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  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in Sans-Cravate

Words and structures a reader meets early in Sans-Cravate, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Three
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sans-Cravate; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Young
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sans-Cravate; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Walking
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sans-Cravate; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Speak
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sans-Cravate; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.