Chapter 4 of Silence, and other stories is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Silence, and other stories is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he. And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it. “Were the maid willing to be freed,” said Mistress Tabitha, softly. Darius colored. “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
Chapter 4 of Silence, and other stories is here in full — 409 sentences across 82 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.
having color or a certain color; sometimes used in combination
From this reading “Darius colored.”
directed downward
From this reading ““That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.”
inflected form of “fling” — throw with force or recklessness
From this reading “And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.”
past form of “free” — grant freedom to; free from confinement
From this reading ““Were the maid willing to be freed,” said Mistress Tabitha, softly.”
subdued or brought low in condition or status
From this reading ““That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.”
a female domestic
From this reading ““Were the maid willing to be freed,” said Mistress Tabitha, softly.”
in a grave and sober manner
From this reading ““That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.”
disposed or inclined toward
From this reading ““A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.”
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.
continue a certain state, condition, or activity
In this reading ““That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.”
In this reading “And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.”
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 “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “Were the maid willing to be freed,” said Mistress Tabitha, softly.
having color or a certain color; sometimes used in combination
From this reading Darius colored.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Darius colored.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.
directed downward
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
inflected form of “fling” — throw with force or recklessness
From this reading And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.
grant freedom to; free from confinement
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
past form of “free” — grant freedom to; free from confinement
From this reading “Were the maid willing to be freed,” said Mistress Tabitha, softly.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
the locus of feelings and intuitions
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.
subdued or brought low in condition or status
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.
a female domestic
From this reading “Were the maid willing to be freed,” said Mistress Tabitha, softly.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
an adulterous woman; a woman who has an ongoing extramarital sexual relationship with a man
From this reading “Were the maid willing to be freed,” said Mistress Tabitha, softly.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.
a male member of a royal family other than the sovereign (especially the son of a sovereign)
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
precisely, exactly
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
in a grave and sober manner
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
with low volume
From this reading “Were the maid willing to be freed,” said Mistress Tabitha, softly.
having strength or power greater than average or expected
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Were the maid willing to be freed,” said Mistress Tabitha, softly.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading And he flung out his own right arm as if it were the one to do it.
consistent with fact or reality; not false
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
disposed or inclined toward
From this reading “A strong right arm and a willing heart might free her, were he prince or not!” said he.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “That is true, aunt,” he said, with a downcast and humbled air, and he turned and went on soberly.
Chapter 4 of Silence, and other stories by Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman holds 409 sentences, grouped into 82 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 4 holds 409 sentences of Silence, and other stories, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Silence, and other stories by Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 409 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 4 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 Silence, and other stories by Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3613 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #76948 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #76948, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 301 minutes of reading across 723 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Silence, and other stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of Silence, and other 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 Silence, and other stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
