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Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04
Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04

Chapter I · Chapter 1

Chapter 1 of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04 is here in full — 436 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04
Context Illustration Reading 34/87 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
"Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"
Quoth he: "I am unanimous!"
And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.
Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.
Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."
0:00 / 0:00
Speed 0.75x
AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04

Chapter I · Chapter 1

Chapter 1 of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04 is here in full — 436 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 34/87 · 5 reading units · Lines 166–170

Line 1
"Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"
Line 2
Quoth he: "I am unanimous!"
Line 3
And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.
Line 4
Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.
Line 5
Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

Learner Dictionary

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.

Apollo noun US /əˈpɑːloʊ/

(Greek mythology) Greek god of light; god of prophecy and poetry and music and healing; son of Zeus and Leto; twin brother of Artemis

From this reading “Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."”

broil verb US /brɔɪl/

cook under a broiler

From this reading “Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."”

cloudless adjective US /ˈklaʊdləs/

free from clouds

From this reading “Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."”

fry verb US /fraɪ/

be excessively hot

From this reading “Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."”

grub noun US /ɡrʌb/

informal terms for a meal

From this reading “Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.”

snub verb US /snʌb/

refuse to acknowledge

From this reading “Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.”

Tho noun US /ðoʊ/

a branch of the Tai languages

From this reading “And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.”

unanimous adjective US /juːˈnænəməs/

in complete agreement

From this reading “Quoth he: "I am unanimous!"”

All words in this reading · 74

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

AcrossprepositionUS /əˈkrɔːs/

from one side of something to the other

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

amauxiliary verbUS /æm/

the form of “be” used with “I”

From this reading Quoth he: "I am unanimous!"

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

ApollonounUS /əˈpɑːloʊ/

(Greek mythology) Greek god of light; god of prophecy and poetry and music and healing; son of Zeus and Leto; twin brother of Artemis

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

armsnounUS /ɑːrmz/

weapons considered collectively

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

babby

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

basketnounUS /ˈbæskət/

a container that is usually woven and has handles

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

BlazedverbUS /bleɪzd/

past form of “blaze” — shine brightly and intensively

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

blessverbUS /bles/

give a benediction to

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

boreverbUS /bɔːr/

cause to be bored

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

bothdeterminerUS /boʊθ/

the two together, not just one

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

broilverbUS /brɔɪl/

cook under a broiler

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

ByprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

chay

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

cloudlessadjectiveUS /ˈklaʊdləs/

free from clouds

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

daynounUS /deɪ/

time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

draggingadjectiveUS /ˈdræɡɪŋ/

marked by a painfully slow and effortful manner

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

feetnounUS /fiːt/

plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

fix'd

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

forthadverbUS /fɔːrθ/

from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

fryverbUS /fraɪ/

be excessively hot

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

GodnounUS /ɡɑːd/

the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

goodadjectiveUS /ɡʊd/

having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

grubnounUS /ɡrʌb/

informal terms for a meal

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

HarryverbUS /ˈheri/

annoy continually or chronically

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading Quoth he: "I am unanimous!"

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

horsenounUS /hɔːrs/

solid-hoofed herbivorous quadruped domesticated since prehistoric times

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

From this reading Quoth he: "I am unanimous!"

I'd

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

I'm

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

isauxiliary verbUS /ɪz/

the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

Jim

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

LestconjunctionUS /lest/

in order that something should not happen

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

littleadjectiveUS /ˈlɪtəl/

limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

MrsnounUS /ˈmɪsɪz/

a form of address for a married woman

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

OurdeterminerUS /ˈaʊər/

belonging to the speaker and others

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

perform'd

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

Quoth

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Quoth he: "I am unanimous!"

SnounUS /es/

1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

shouldmodal verbUS /ʃʊd/

used to say what is right, expected, or advisable

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

shouldersnounUS /ˈʃoʊldərz/

plural of “shoulder” — the part of the body between the neck and the upper arm

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

Sibson

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

skynounUS /skaɪ/

the atmosphere and outer space as viewed from the earth

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

smiledverbUS /smaɪld/

past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

snubverbUS /snʌb/

refuse to acknowledge

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

soconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

soonadverbUS /suːn/

in the near future

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

startedverbUS /ˈstɑːrtɪd/

past form of “start” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

sunnounUS /sʌn/

the star that is the source of light and heat for the planets in the solar system

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

sureadjectiveUS /ʃʊr/

having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

takeverbUS /teɪk/

carry out

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading Apollo smiled!--that is, the sun Blazed in a cloudless sky, And Sibson soon was in a "broil" By dragging of his "fry."

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

theirdeterminerUS /ðer/

belonging to the people or things already mentioned

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

ThonounUS /ðoʊ/

a branch of the Tai languages

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading Across his shoulders Sibson bore A basket with the "grub," And to the "chay" perform'd the "horse," Lest Mrs. S____ should snub.

toilverbUS /tɔɪl/

work hard

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

treatverbUS /triːt/

interact in a certain way

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

trimverbUS /trɪm/

remove the edges from and cut down to the desired size

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

twould

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

umnix'd

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

unanimousadjectiveUS /juːˈnænəməs/

in complete agreement

From this reading Quoth he: "I am unanimous!"

valk

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "Our Jim and Harry both could valk, (God bless their little feet!) The babby in my arms I'd take-- I'm sure 'twould be a treat;"

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading And so the day was fix'd; And forth they started in good trim, Tho' not with toil umnix'd.

Chapter 1 of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04 by Robert Seymour holds 436 sentences, grouped into 88 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.

What does chapter 1 of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04 contain?

Chapter 1 holds 436 sentences of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04, unabridged, divided into 88 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 1 of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04 by Robert Seymour exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 436 sentences, grouped into 88 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.

How do I study chapter 1 of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04?

Work through the 88 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 88 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.

Can chapter 1 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 1 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.

Questions about reading Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04

Common questions about reading Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04 by Robert Seymour on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04?

Yes. All 436 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #5648 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04 is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #5648, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04 take to read?

About 36 minutes of reading across 88 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04 section by section

How to work through Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04 section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 1 chapters of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04 to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04

Words and structures a reader meets early in Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Patience
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Monument
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Smiling
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Grief
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Sketches by Seymour — Volume 04; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.