Chapter 1 of Shadowings is here in full — 461 sentences across 93 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Shadowings is here in full — 461 sentences across 93 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC. Printers S. J. PARKHILL & CO. BOSTON, U. S. A. PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_. PLATE II 76 "_Shinne-Shinne_" also called _Yama-Zemi_, and _Kuma-Zemi_.
Chapter 1 of Shadowings is here in full — 461 sentences across 93 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/92 · 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.
in addition
From this reading “PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.”
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
state capital and largest city of Massachusetts; a major center for banking and financial services
From this reading “BOSTON, U. S. A.”
resembling or characteristic of a phantom
From this reading “_AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC.”
a string of more than 3,000 islands to the east of Asia extending 1,300 miles between the Sea of Japan and the western Pacific Ocean
From this reading “_AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC.”
(baseball) base consisting of a rubber slab where the batter stands; it must be touched by a base runner in order to score
From this reading “PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.”
plural of “printer” — someone whose occupation is printing
From this reading “Printers S. J. PARKHILL & CO.”
one of the two competitions in the next to the last round of an elimination tournament
From this reading “PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.”
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.
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 PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PLATE II 76 "_Shinne-Shinne_" also called _Yama-Zemi_, and _Kuma-Zemi_.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading BOSTON, U. S. A.
in addition
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading _AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading _AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC.
state capital and largest city of Massachusetts; a major center for banking and financial services
From this reading BOSTON, U. S. A.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
an odorless very poisonous gas that is a product of incomplete combustion of carbon
From this reading Printers S. J. PARKHILL & CO.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC.
resembling or characteristic of a phantom
From this reading _AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading PLATE II 76 "_Shinne-Shinne_" also called _Yama-Zemi_, and _Kuma-Zemi_.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading _AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC.
a unit of electrical energy equal to the work done when a current of one ampere passes through a resistance of one ohm for one second
From this reading Printers S. J. PARKHILL & CO.
a string of more than 3,000 islands to the east of Asia extending 1,300 miles between the Sea of Japan and the western Pacific Ocean
From this reading _AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PLATE II 76 "_Shinne-Shinne_" also called _Yama-Zemi_, and _Kuma-Zemi_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading _AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Printers S. J. PARKHILL & CO.
(baseball) base consisting of a rubber slab where the batter stands; it must be touched by a base runner in order to score
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
plural of “printer” — someone whose occupation is printing
From this reading Printers S. J. PARKHILL & CO.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _AUTHOR OF_ "EXOTICS AND RETROSPECTIVES," "IN GHOSTLY JAPAN," ETC., ETC.
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading Printers S. J. PARKHILL & CO.
one of the two competitions in the next to the last round of an elimination tournament
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PLATE II 76 "_Shinne-Shinne_" also called _Yama-Zemi_, and _Kuma-Zemi_.
a base containing nitrogen that is found in RNA (but not in DNA) and derived from pyrimidine; pairs with adenine
From this reading BOSTON, U. S. A.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading PLATE II 76 "_Shinne-Shinne_" also called _Yama-Zemi_, and _Kuma-Zemi_.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading PLATE I 72 1-2, _Young Semi._ 3-4, _Haru-Zemi_, also called _Nawashiro-Zemi_.
Chapter 1 of Shadowings by Lafcadio Hearn holds 461 sentences, grouped into 93 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 461 sentences of Shadowings, unabridged, divided into 93 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Shadowings by Lafcadio Hearn exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 461 sentences, grouped into 93 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 93 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 93 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 Shadowings by Lafcadio Hearn on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2236 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34215 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34215, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 186 minutes of reading across 448 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Shadowings section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of Shadowings 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 Shadowings, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
