Chapter 17 of Small Souls is here in full — 189 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of Small Souls is here in full — 189 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir. They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself. Emilie was taking down water-colours from the wall: "The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together. Marianne suddenly burst into sobs.
Chapter 17 of Small Souls is here in full — 189 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/37 · 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.
a lady's bedroom or private sitting room
From this reading “Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.”
being full of or promoting cheer; having or showing good spirits
From this reading “"The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.”
plural of “drawing” — an illustration that is drawn by hand and published in a book, magazine, or newspaper
From this reading “"The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.”
first in order of birth
From this reading “They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.”
have in common; held or experienced in common
From this reading “They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.”
plural of “sob” — a dyspneic condition
From this reading “Marianne suddenly burst into sobs.”
with low volume
From this reading “"The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.”
any creative group active in the innovation and application of new concepts and techniques in a given field (especially in the arts)
From this reading “Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.”
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 “They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.”
In this reading “Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.”
In this reading “Marianne suddenly burst into sobs.”
In this reading “Emilie was taking down water-colours from the wall:”
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 They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
a lady's bedroom or private sitting room
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
From this reading "The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.
come open suddenly and violently, as if from internal pressure
From this reading Marianne suddenly burst into sobs.
being full of or promoting cheer; having or showing good spirits
From this reading "The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Emilie was taking down water-colours from the wall:
plural of “drawing” — an illustration that is drawn by hand and published in a book, magazine, or newspaper
From this reading "The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.
first in order of birth
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Emilie was taking down water-colours from the wall:
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Marianne suddenly burst into sobs.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading "The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading "The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.
have in common; held or experienced in common
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.
plural of “sob” — a dyspneic condition
From this reading Marianne suddenly burst into sobs.
with low volume
From this reading "The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Marianne suddenly burst into sobs.
the act of someone who picks up or takes something
From this reading Emilie was taking down water-colours from the wall:
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading They shared a sitting-room between them; Louise, the eldest sister, had one to herself.
in contact with each other or in proximity
From this reading "The room was so bright and cheerful!" she said, softly, and put the drawings together.
any creative group active in the innovation and application of new concepts and techniques in a given field (especially in the arts)
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading Emilie was taking down water-colours from the wall:
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Emilie was taking down water-colours from the wall:
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Emilie was taking down water-colours from the wall:
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading Next day, Emilie and Marianne van Naghel were hard at work in their boudoir.
Chapter 17 of Small Souls by Louis Couperus holds 189 sentences, grouped into 38 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 17 holds 189 sentences of Small Souls, unabridged, divided into 38 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of Small Souls by Louis Couperus exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 189 sentences, grouped into 38 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 38 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 38 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 17 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 Small Souls by Louis Couperus on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5866 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34021 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34021, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 488 minutes of reading across 1174 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Small Souls section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of Small Souls 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 Small Souls, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
