Chapter 12 of Simon the Jester is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of Simon the Jester is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
You could have knocked me down with a feather. It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent. I repeat, therefore, unblushingly--you could have knocked me down with a feather. I gasped. The little man wiped his eyes.
Chapter 12 of Simon the Jester is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
very good; of the highest quality
From this reading “It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.”
join tongue and groove, in carpentry
From this reading “You could have knocked me down with a feather.”
past form of “gasp” — breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted
From this reading “I gasped.”
past form of “knock” — deliver a sharp blow or push
From this reading “You could have knocked me down with a feather.”
a figure of speech in which an expression is used to refer to something that it does not literally denote in order to suggest a similarity
From this reading “It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.”
to say, state, or perform again
From this reading “I repeat, therefore, unblushingly--you could have knocked me down with a feather.”
repeated too often; overfamiliar through overuse
From this reading “It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.”
past form of “wipe” — rub with a circular motion
From this reading “The little man wiped his eyes.”
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 You could have knocked me down with a feather.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading You could have knocked me down with a feather.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading You could have knocked me down with a feather.
very good; of the highest quality
From this reading It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.
opinion or judgment
From this reading The little man wiped his eyes.
join tongue and groove, in carpentry
From this reading You could have knocked me down with a feather.
past form of “gasp” — breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted
From this reading I gasped.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading You could have knocked me down with a feather.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The little man wiped his eyes.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.
past form of “knock” — deliver a sharp blow or push
From this reading You could have knocked me down with a feather.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.
used to form the comparative of some adjectives and adverbs
From this reading It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading The little man wiped his eyes.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The little man wiped his eyes.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading You could have knocked me down with a feather.
a figure of speech in which an expression is used to refer to something that it does not literally denote in order to suggest a similarity
From this reading It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.
not one, and not any
From this reading It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.
to say, state, or perform again
From this reading I repeat, therefore, unblushingly--you could have knocked me down with a feather.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.
for that reason; as a result
From this reading I repeat, therefore, unblushingly--you could have knocked me down with a feather.
repeated too often; overfamiliar through overuse
From this reading It is a trite metaphor, I know; but it is none the less excellent.
without blushing
From this reading I repeat, therefore, unblushingly--you could have knocked me down with a feather.
past form of “wipe” — rub with a circular motion
From this reading The little man wiped his eyes.
in the company of; together with
From this reading You could have knocked me down with a feather.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You could have knocked me down with a feather.
Chapter 12 of Simon the Jester by William John Locke holds 417 sentences, grouped into 84 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 12 holds 417 sentences of Simon the Jester, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Simon the Jester by William John Locke exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 417 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 12 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 Simon the Jester by William John Locke on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7218 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3828 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3828, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1444 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Simon the Jester section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of Simon the Jester 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 Simon the Jester, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
