Chapter 8 of Silverthorns is here in full — 447 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Silverthorns is here in full — 447 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Mrs Waldron shook her head sadly. "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said. "But I will tell my husband what you say. Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor. "Don't exaggerate it, my dear lady.
Chapter 8 of Silverthorns is here in full — 447 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/89 · 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.
to enlarge beyond bounds or the truth
From this reading “"Don't exaggerate it, my dear lady.”
a republic in western Europe; the largest country wholly in Europe
From this reading “"I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.”
not capable of occurring or being accomplished or dealt with
From this reading “"I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.”
discontinued temporarily
From this reading “Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.”
a republic in southern Europe on the Italian Peninsula; was the core of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire between the 4th century BC and the 5th century AD
From this reading “"I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.”
in an unfortunate way
From this reading “Mrs Waldron shook her head sadly.”
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading “Mrs Waldron shook her head sadly.”
the region of the United States lying to the south of the Mason-Dixon line
From this reading “"I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.”
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.
as might be expected
In this reading “Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.”
In this reading “"Don't exaggerate it, my dear lady.”
In this reading “Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.”
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 Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
having undesirable or negative qualities
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "But I will tell my husband what you say.
an occurrence of something
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
dearly loved
From this reading "Don't exaggerate it, my dear lady.
the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Don't exaggerate it, my dear lady.
divisible by two
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
to enlarge beyond bounds or the truth
From this reading "Don't exaggerate it, my dear lady.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
a republic in western Europe; the largest country wholly in Europe
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading Mrs Waldron shook her head sadly.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Mrs Waldron shook her head sadly.
a married man; a woman's partner in marriage
From this reading "But I will tell my husband what you say.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
not capable of occurring or being accomplished or dealt with
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
discontinued temporarily
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
a republic in southern Europe on the Italian Peninsula; was the core of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire between the 4th century BC and the 5th century AD
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
a polite name for any woman
From this reading "Don't exaggerate it, my dear lady.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading Mrs Waldron shook her head sadly.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "But I will tell my husband what you say.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
in an unfortunate way
From this reading Mrs Waldron shook her head sadly.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
express in words
From this reading "But I will tell my husband what you say.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading Mrs Waldron shook her head sadly.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
the region of the United States lying to the south of the Mason-Dixon line
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
express in words
From this reading "But I will tell my husband what you say.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mrs Waldron shook her head sadly.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Of course, in a case of life or death--" "But it is not so bad as that; I have never said it was," interrupted the doctor.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "But I will tell my husband what you say.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "But I will tell my husband what you say.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading "I think even one of those would be about as impossible for us as the South of France or Italy," she said.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "But I will tell my husband what you say.
Chapter 8 of Silverthorns by Mrs. Molesworth holds 447 sentences, grouped into 90 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 8 holds 447 sentences of Silverthorns, unabridged, divided into 90 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Silverthorns by Mrs. Molesworth exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 447 sentences, grouped into 90 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 90 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 90 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 8 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 Silverthorns by Mrs. Molesworth on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3587 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #43122 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #43122, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 298 minutes of reading across 718 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Silverthorns section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of Silverthorns 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 Silverthorns, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
