Chapter 7 of Sir Nigel is here in full — 172 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of Sir Nigel is here in full — 172 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The eager face had clouded. For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate. Down in a twinkling came all his high hopes to the ground. Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment! The Squire of such a knight must dress with the best.
Chapter 7 of Sir Nigel is here in full — 172 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/34 · 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.
protective covering made of metal and used in combat
From this reading “For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.”
made troubled or apprehensive or distressed in appearance
From this reading “The eager face had clouded.”
plural of “dream” — a series of mental images and emotions occurring during sleep
From this reading “Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!”
concerned with worldly rather than spiritual interests
From this reading “Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!”
(baseball) base consisting of a rubber slab where the batter stands; it must be touched by a base runner in order to score
From this reading “For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.”
morally degraded
From this reading “Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!”
young nobleman attendant on a knight
From this reading “The Squire of such a knight must dress with the best.”
a very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat)
From this reading “Down in a twinkling came all his high hopes to the ground.”
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 For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading Down in a twinkling came all his high hopes to the ground.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
protective covering made of metal and used in combat
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
the supreme effort one can make
From this reading The Squire of such a knight must dress with the best.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
on the far side of; further than
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Down in a twinkling came all his high hopes to the ground.
made troubled or apprehensive or distressed in appearance
From this reading The eager face had clouded.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Down in a twinkling came all his high hopes to the ground.
plural of “dream” — a series of mental images and emotions occurring during sleep
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
put on clothes
From this reading The Squire of such a knight must dress with the best.
having or showing keen interest or intense desire or impatient expectancy
From this reading The eager face had clouded.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading The eager face had clouded.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
Not remembered; lapsed from memory.
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
a feeling of satisfaction at having achieved your desires
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
coins made of gold
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
the solid part of the earth's surface
From this reading Down in a twinkling came all his high hopes to the ground.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The eager face had clouded.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading Down in a twinkling came all his high hopes to the ground.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
plural of “hope” — a specific instance of feeling hopeful
From this reading Down in a twinkling came all his high hopes to the ground.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Down in a twinkling came all his high hopes to the ground.
a very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat)
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
originally a person of noble birth trained to arms and chivalry; today in Great Britain a person honored by the sovereign for personal merit
From this reading The Squire of such a knight must dress with the best.
concerned with worldly rather than spiritual interests
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
thing or person that acts to produce a particular effect or achieve an end
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading The Squire of such a knight must dress with the best.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
(baseball) base consisting of a rubber slab where the batter stands; it must be touched by a base runner in order to score
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
work done by one person or group that benefits another
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
morally degraded
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
young nobleman attendant on a knight
From this reading The Squire of such a knight must dress with the best.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading The Squire of such a knight must dress with the best.
be agreeable or acceptable to
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The eager face had clouded.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Down in a twinkling came all his high hopes to the ground.
a very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat)
From this reading Down in a twinkling came all his high hopes to the ground.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading For the instant he had forgotten that a suit of armor was as much beyond his means as a service of gold plate.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Oh, these sordid material things, which come between our dreams and their fulfilment!
in the company of; together with
From this reading The Squire of such a knight must dress with the best.
Chapter 7 of Sir Nigel by Arthur Conan Doyle holds 172 sentences, grouped into 35 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 7 holds 172 sentences of Sir Nigel, unabridged, divided into 35 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of Sir Nigel by Arthur Conan Doyle exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 172 sentences, grouped into 35 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 35 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 35 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 Sir Nigel by Arthur Conan Doyle on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6718 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2845 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2845, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 559 minutes of reading across 1344 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Sir Nigel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of Sir Nigel 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 Nigel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
