Chapter 5 of Short Stories is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter V
Chapter 5 of Short Stories is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place. Pseldonimov flew to wipe it off with a table-napkin. This last disaster crushed him completely. "My friends, this is too much," he cried in despair. "The man is drunk, your Excellency," Pseldonimov prompted him again.
Chapter 5 of Short Stories is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
obvious to the eye or mind
From this reading “At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.”
apply (usually a liquid) to a surface
From this reading “At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.”
a state of extreme (usually irremediable) ruin and misfortune
From this reading “This last disaster crushed him completely.”
a title used to address dignitaries (such as ambassadors or governors); usually preceded by “Your” or “His” or “Her”
From this reading “"The man is drunk, your Excellency," Pseldonimov prompted him again.”
past form of “prompt” — give an incentive for action
From this reading “"The man is drunk, your Excellency," Pseldonimov prompted him again.”
a clear liquid secreted into the mouth by the salivary glands and mucous glands of the mouth; moistens the mouth and starts the digestion of starches
From this reading “At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.”
a covering spread over a dining table
From this reading “At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.”
rub with a circular motion
From this reading “Pseldonimov flew to wipe it off with a table-napkin.”
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 “At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.”
In this reading “At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.”
In this reading “"My friends, this is too much," he cried in despair.”
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 At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
anew
From this reading "The man is drunk, your Excellency," Pseldonimov prompted him again.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (“whole” is often used informally for “wholly”)
From this reading This last disaster crushed him completely.
obvious to the eye or mind
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading "My friends, this is too much," he cried in despair.
treated so as to have a permanently wrinkled appearance
From this reading This last disaster crushed him completely.
apply (usually a liquid) to a surface
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
a state in which all hope is lost or absent
From this reading "My friends, this is too much," he cried in despair.
a state of extreme (usually irremediable) ruin and misfortune
From this reading This last disaster crushed him completely.
stupefied or excited by a chemical substance (especially alcohol)
From this reading "The man is drunk, your Excellency," Pseldonimov prompted him again.
a title used to address dignitaries (such as ambassadors or governors); usually preceded by “Your” or “His” or “Her”
From this reading "The man is drunk, your Excellency," Pseldonimov prompted him again.
inflected form of “fly” — travel through the air; be airborne
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
plural of “friend” — a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading "My friends, this is too much," he cried in despair.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "My friends, this is too much," he cried in despair.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading This last disaster crushed him completely.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "My friends, this is too much," he cried in despair.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Pseldonimov flew to wipe it off with a table-napkin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
immediately past
From this reading This last disaster crushed him completely.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading "The man is drunk, your Excellency," Pseldonimov prompted him again.
a particular point in time
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
used to form the superlative
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading "My friends, this is too much," he cried in despair.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "My friends, this is too much," he cried in despair.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Pseldonimov flew to wipe it off with a table-napkin.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
past form of “prompt” — give an incentive for action
From this reading "The man is drunk, your Excellency," Pseldonimov prompted him again.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Pseldonimov flew to wipe it off with a table-napkin.
a clear liquid secreted into the mouth by the salivary glands and mucous glands of the mouth; moistens the mouth and starts the digestion of starches
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Pseldonimov flew to wipe it off with a table-napkin.
a covering spread over a dining table
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This last disaster crushed him completely.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading At that moment Ivan Ilyitch spluttered so that a great dab of saliva flew on to the tablecloth in a most conspicuous place.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading "My friends, this is too much," he cried in despair.
rub with a circular motion
From this reading Pseldonimov flew to wipe it off with a table-napkin.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Pseldonimov flew to wipe it off with a table-napkin.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "The man is drunk, your Excellency," Pseldonimov prompted him again.
Chapter 5 of Short Stories by Fyodor Dostoyevsky holds 405 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 5 holds 405 sentences of Short Stories, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of Short Stories by Fyodor Dostoyevsky exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 405 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 5 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 Short Stories by Fyodor Dostoyevsky on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5443 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #40745 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #40745, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 453 minutes of reading across 1089 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Short Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of Short Stories 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 Short Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
