Chapter 7 of Silanus the Christian is here in full — 193 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of Silanus the Christian is here in full — 193 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.” What, it asked, makes a tyrant terrible? The answer was, “his armed guards.” A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him. Men fear because they love life, and a tyrant can take life.
Chapter 7 of Silanus the Christian is here in full — 193 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/38 · 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.
(used of persons or the military) characterized by having or bearing arms
From this reading “The answer was, “his armed guards.””
a teacher and prophet born in Bethlehem and active in Nazareth; his life and sermons form the basis for Christianity (circa 4 BC - AD 29)
From this reading “PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.””
plural of “guard” — a person who keeps watch over something or someone
From this reading “The answer was, “his armed guards.””
deliver a lecture or talk
From this reading “PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.””
an insane person
From this reading “A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.”
-ing form of “transcribe” — write out from speech, notes, etc.
From this reading “PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.””
a cruel and oppressive dictator
From this reading “What, it asked, makes a tyrant terrible?”
plural of “weapon” — any instrument or instrumentality used in fighting or hunting
From this reading “A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.”
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 “The answer was, “his armed guards.””
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 What, it asked, makes a tyrant terrible?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.
react verbally
From this reading The answer was, “his armed guards.”
(used of persons or the military) characterized by having or bearing arms
From this reading The answer was, “his armed guards.”
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading What, it asked, makes a tyrant terrible?
for the reason that
From this reading Men fear because they love life, and a tyrant can take life.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading Men fear because they love life, and a tyrant can take life.
a young person of either sex
From this reading A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.
a teacher and prophet born in Bethlehem and active in Nazareth; his life and sermons form the basis for Christianity (circa 4 BC - AD 29)
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event
From this reading A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.
feeling no fear
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
plural of “guard” — a person who keeps watch over something or someone
From this reading The answer was, “his armed guards.”
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The answer was, “his armed guards.”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading What, it asked, makes a tyrant terrible?
evidencing the possession of inside information
From this reading A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.
deliver a lecture or talk
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Men fear because they love life, and a tyrant can take life.
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
an insane person
From this reading A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.
plural of “make” — a recognizable kind
From this reading What, it asked, makes a tyrant terrible?
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.
the force of workers available
From this reading Men fear because they love life, and a tyrant can take life.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.
United States feminist (1885-1977)
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
carry out
From this reading Men fear because they love life, and a tyrant can take life.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading What, it asked, makes a tyrant terrible?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Men fear because they love life, and a tyrant can take life.
-ing form of “transcribe” — write out from speech, notes, etc.
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
a cruel and oppressive dictator
From this reading What, it asked, makes a tyrant terrible?
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
plural of “weapon” — any instrument or instrumentality used in fighting or hunting
From this reading A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What, it asked, makes a tyrant terrible?
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading PAUL ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST The lecture from which I was transcribing was on “fearlessness.”
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading A child, or madman, not knowing what guards and weapons mean, would not fear him.
Chapter 7 of Silanus the Christian by Edwin Abbott Abbott holds 193 sentences, grouped into 39 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 193 sentences of Silanus the Christian, unabridged, divided into 39 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of Silanus the Christian by Edwin Abbott Abbott exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 193 sentences, grouped into 39 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 39 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 39 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 Silanus the Christian by Edwin Abbott Abbott on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6584 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56843 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56843, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 548 minutes of reading across 1317 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Silanus the Christian section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 37 chapters of Silanus the Christian 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 Silanus the Christian, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
