Chapter 7 of Shallow Soil is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of Shallow Soil is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Do, please!" She glanced at him hurriedly. "Yes," she whispered. Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow. Off to Sara now!
Chapter 7 of Shallow Soil is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
(usually followed by “to”) having the necessary means or skill or know-how or authority to do something
From this reading “Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.”
past form of “glance” — throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading “She glanced at him hurriedly.”
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading “Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.”
in a hurried or hasty manner
From this reading “She glanced at him hurriedly.”
of or relating to two people who are married to each other
From this reading “Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.”
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading “"Do, please!"”
a statement (either spoken or written) that is made to reply to a question or request or criticism or accusation
From this reading “Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.”
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading “"Yes," she whispered.”
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 Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
(usually followed by “to”) having the necessary means or skill or know-how or authority to do something
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading She glanced at him hurriedly.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "Do, please!"
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
past form of “glance” — throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading She glanced at him hurriedly.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading She glanced at him hurriedly.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
in a hurried or hasty manner
From this reading She glanced at him hurriedly.
of or relating to two people who are married to each other
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Off to Sara now!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Off to Sara now!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
on one occasion
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading "Do, please!"
a statement (either spoken or written) that is made to reply to a question or request or criticism or accusation
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Off to Sara now!
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She glanced at him hurriedly.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
up to a particular time
From this reading Ole joined them; he had not been able to get hold of Arendal at once; he could not get a reply until to-morrow.
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading "Yes," she whispered.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes," she whispered.
Chapter 7 of Shallow Soil by Knut Hamsun holds 401 sentences, grouped into 81 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 7 holds 401 sentences of Shallow Soil, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of Shallow Soil by Knut Hamsun exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 401 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 7 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 Shallow Soil by Knut Hamsun on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5660 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #7537 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #7537, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 471 minutes of reading across 1132 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Shallow Soil section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 14 chapters of Shallow Soil 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 Shallow Soil, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
