Chapter 27 of Sir Tom is here in full — 212 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVII
Chapter 27 of Sir Tom is here in full — 212 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE DEBUT. The door was open. The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer. Her dress was not white like that of the ordinary _debutante_. It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.
Chapter 27 of Sir Tom is here in full — 212 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/42 · 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.
past form of “afford” — be able to spare or give up
From this reading “The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.”
having or capable of producing colors
From this reading “It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.”
present for the first time to the public
From this reading “THE DEBUT.”
a young woman making her debut into society
an alert and refreshed state
From this reading “It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.”
any new participant in some activity
From this reading “The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.”
a judge of a probate court
From this reading “Her dress was not white like that of the ordinary _debutante_.”
intended for use in a procession
From this reading “The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.”
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.
very tall branching herb with showy much-doubled yellow flower heads
In this reading “It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.”
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 The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.
past form of “afford” — be able to spare or give up
From this reading The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.
having or capable of producing colors
From this reading It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.
present for the first time to the public
From this reading THE DEBUT.
a young woman making her debut into society
From this reading Her dress was not white like that of the ordinary _debutante_.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading The door was open.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.
put on clothes
From this reading Her dress was not white like that of the ordinary _debutante_.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.
an alert and refreshed state
From this reading It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.
having the deep slightly brownish color of gold
From this reading It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Her dress was not white like that of the ordinary _debutante_.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Her dress was not white like that of the ordinary _debutante_.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.
any new participant in some activity
From this reading The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Her dress was not white like that of the ordinary _debutante_.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading The door was open.
a judge of a probate court
From this reading Her dress was not white like that of the ordinary _debutante_.
a course of conduct
From this reading The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.
intended for use in a procession
From this reading The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.
yielding readily to pressure or weight
From this reading It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.
a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading The long drawing-room afforded a sort of processional path for the newcomer.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Her dress was not white like that of the ordinary _debutante_.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE DEBUT.
having or producing a comfortable and agreeable degree of heat or imparting or maintaining heat
From this reading It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The door was open.
a Caucasian
From this reading Her dress was not white like that of the ordinary _debutante_.
of the color intermediate between green and orange in the color spectrum; of something resembling the color of an egg yolk
From this reading It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.
but in spite of that
From this reading It had a yellow golden glow of colour, warm yet soft.
Chapter 27 of Sir Tom by Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant holds 212 sentences, grouped into 43 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 27 holds 212 sentences of Sir Tom, unabridged, divided into 43 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 27 of Sir Tom by Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 212 sentences, grouped into 43 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 43 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 43 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 27 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 Tom by Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9204 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30692 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30692, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1841 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Sir Tom section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Sir Tom 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 Tom, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
