Chapter 12 of Shakespeare's First Folio is here in full — 1342 sentences across 269 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of Shakespeare's First Folio is here in full — 1342 sentences across 269 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Hel. Which is the Frenchman? Dia. Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier. Is't not a handsom Gentleman Hel.
Chapter 12 of Shakespeare's First Folio is here in full — 1342 sentences across 269 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/268 · 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.
an intelligence agency of the United States in the Department of Defense; is responsible for providing intelligence in support of military planning and operations and weapons acquisition
From this reading “Dia.”
a boy or man
From this reading “Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.”
a person of French nationality
From this reading “Which is the Frenchman?”
unflinching in battle or action
From this reading “Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.”
a man of refinement
From this reading “Is't not a handsom Gentleman Hel.”
rip off; ask an unreasonable price
From this reading “Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.”
plural of “ti” — a light strong grey lustrous corrosion-resistant metallic element used in strong lightweight alloys (as for airplane parts); the main sources are rutile and ilmenite
From this reading “Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.”
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading “Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.”
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 Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
an intelligence agency of the United States in the Department of Defense; is responsible for providing intelligence in support of military planning and operations and weapons acquisition
From this reading Dia.
a boy or man
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
a person of French nationality
From this reading Which is the Frenchman?
unflinching in battle or action
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
a man of refinement
From this reading Is't not a handsom Gentleman Hel.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Is't not a handsom Gentleman Hel.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
(Norse mythology) goddess of the dead and queen of the underworld
From this reading Hel.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Which is the Frenchman?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Is't not a handsom Gentleman Hel.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
used to form the superlative
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Is't not a handsom Gentleman Hel.
rip off; ask an unreasonable price
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Which is the Frenchman?
plural of “ti” — a light strong grey lustrous corrosion-resistant metallic element used in strong lightweight alloys (as for airplane parts); the main sources are rutile and ilmenite
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Which is the Frenchman?
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Hee, That with the plume, 'tis a most gallant fellow, I would he lou'd his wife: if he were honester He were much goodlier.
Chapter 12 of Shakespeare's First Folio by William Shakespeare holds 1342 sentences, grouped into 269 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 12 holds 1342 sentences of Shakespeare's First Folio, unabridged, divided into 269 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Shakespeare's First Folio by William Shakespeare exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 1342 sentences, grouped into 269 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 269 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 269 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 12 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 Shakespeare's First Folio by William Shakespeare on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 55059 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2270 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2270, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 11012 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Shakespeare's First Folio section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of Shakespeare's First Folio 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 Shakespeare's First Folio, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
