Chapter 8 of Sketches New and Old is here in full — 32 sentences across 7 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Sketches New and Old is here in full — 32 sentences across 7 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
[ Scene-The Studio.] “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.” “You're a simpleton!” “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!” “You're a dummy!”
Chapter 8 of Sketches New and Old is here in full — 32 sentences across 7 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/6 · 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.
North American republic containing 50 states - 48 conterminous states in North America plus Alaska in northwest North America and the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean; achieved independence in 1776
From this reading ““I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!””
the childhood of a boy
From this reading ““Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.””
a person who does not talk
From this reading ““You're a dummy!””
lacking in feeling or pity or warmth
From this reading ““I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!””
a hard crystalline metamorphic rock that takes a high polish; used for sculpture and as building material
From this reading ““I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!””
a sculpture representing a human or animal
From this reading ““I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!””
workplace for the teaching or practice of an art
From this reading “[ Scene-The Studio.]”
an inclination to support or be loyal to or to agree with an opinion
From this reading ““I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!””
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're a simpleton!”
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.”
North American republic containing 50 states - 48 conterminous states in North America plus Alaska in northwest North America and the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean; achieved independence in 1776
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
delighting the senses or exciting intellectual or emotional admiration
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
the childhood of a boy
From this reading “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.”
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
having a low or inadequate temperature or feeling a sensation of coldness or having been made cold by e.g. ice or refrigeration
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
the appearance conveyed by a person's face
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
a person who does not talk
From this reading “You're a dummy!”
divisible by two
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.”
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
lacking in feeling or pity or warmth
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.”
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
a hard crystalline metamorphic rock that takes a high polish; used for sculpture and as building material
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
the force of workers available
From this reading “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.”
not any; not one
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
not one thing; not anything
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.”
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.”
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading [ Scene-The Studio.]
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
a person lacking intelligence or common sense
From this reading “You're a simpleton!”
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
a sculpture representing a human or animal
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
workplace for the teaching or practice of an art
From this reading [ Scene-The Studio.]
an inclination to support or be loyal to or to agree with an opinion
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “I have nothing left to love but my poor statue of America--and see, even she has no sympathy for me in her cold marble countenance--so beautiful and so heartless!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Oh, John, friend of my boyhood, I am the unhappiest of men.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “You're a simpleton!”
Chapter 8 of Sketches New and Old by Mark Twain holds 32 sentences, grouped into 7 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 8 holds 32 sentences of Sketches New and Old, unabridged, divided into 7 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Sketches New and Old by Mark Twain exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 32 sentences, grouped into 7 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 7 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 7 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 8 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 Sketches New and Old by Mark Twain on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2319 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3189 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3189, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 193 minutes of reading across 464 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Sketches New and Old section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 10 chapters of Sketches New and Old 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 Sketches New and Old, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
