Chapter 4 of Sir Christopher is here in full — 197 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Sir Christopher is here in full — 197 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
BLESSING AND BANNING "Mother! Moth-_er_!" It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade. "Yes, Poppet, what is it?" "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
Chapter 4 of Sir Christopher is here in full — 197 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
an official prohibition or edict against something
From this reading “BLESSING AND BANNING "Mother!”
the formal act of approving
From this reading “BLESSING AND BANNING "Mother!”
decoration that is hung (as a tapestry) on a wall or over a window
From this reading “It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.”
an intermediate platform in a staircase
From this reading “It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.”
typically crepuscular or nocturnal insect having a stout body and feathery or hairlike antennae
From this reading “Moth-_er_!"”
informal or slang terms for mentally irregular
From this reading “"Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."”
past form of “serve” — serve a purpose, role, or function
From this reading “"Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."”
on a floor above
From this reading “"Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."”
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 “It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.”
In this reading “"Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."”
In this reading “It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading BLESSING AND BANNING "Mother!
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
a railing at the side of a staircase or balcony to prevent people from falling
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
an official prohibition or edict against something
From this reading BLESSING AND BANNING "Mother!
the formal act of approving
From this reading BLESSING AND BANNING "Mother!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
a trivalent metallic element of the rare earth group; occurs with yttrium
From this reading Moth-_er_!"
a diagram or picture illustrating textual material
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
decoration that is hung (as a tapestry) on a wall or over a window
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Yes, Poppet, what is it?"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
an intermediate platform in a staircase
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
typically crepuscular or nocturnal insect having a stout body and feathery or hairlike antennae
From this reading Moth-_er_!"
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading BLESSING AND BANNING "Mother!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
informal or slang terms for mentally irregular
From this reading "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
above and across; more than
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
a mushroom-shaped valve that rises perpendicularly from its seat; commonly used in internal-combustion engines
From this reading "Yes, Poppet, what is it?"
make a promise or commitment
From this reading "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
past form of “serve” — serve a purpose, role, or function
From this reading "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
on a floor above
From this reading "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "Yes, Poppet, what is it?"
at the time that
From this reading "Thou didtht not come upstairs as thou didtht promise when the nuts were served...."
a Caucasian
From this reading It was Cecil's voice on the landing, and Cecil's white nightgowned figure hanging over the balustrade.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes, Poppet, what is it?"
Chapter 4 of Sir Christopher by Maud Wilder Goodwin holds 197 sentences, grouped into 40 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 197 sentences of Sir Christopher, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Sir Christopher by Maud Wilder Goodwin exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 197 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 Sir Christopher by Maud Wilder Goodwin on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5127 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #48294 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #48294, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 427 minutes of reading across 1026 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Sir Christopher section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of Sir Christopher 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 Sir Christopher, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
