Chapter 9 of St. Cuthbert's is here in full — 384 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of St. Cuthbert's is here in full — 384 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Aye," responded the other, "this is the fast day. Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day. They wadna work that day, nae mair than on the Sabbath. They willna even whustle. Ae mornin' I met Davie Drewry, an' 'twas the fast day.
Chapter 9 of St. Cuthbert's is here in full — 384 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/76 · 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.
quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form)
From this reading “"Aye," responded the other, "this is the fast day.”
range of what one can know or understand
From this reading “Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.”
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading “Ae mornin' I met Davie Drewry, an' 'twas the fast day.”
past form of “respond” — show a response or a reaction to something
From this reading “"Aye," responded the other, "this is the fast day.”
a day of rest and worship: Sunday for most Christians; Saturday for the Jews and a few Christians; Friday for Muslims
From this reading “Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.”
a formal religious ceremony conferring a specific grace on those who receive it
From this reading “Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.”
rigidly accurate; allowing no deviation from a standard
From this reading “Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.”
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading “They wadna work that day, nae mair than on the Sabbath.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ae mornin' I met Davie Drewry, an' 'twas the fast day.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Ae mornin' I met Davie Drewry, an' 'twas the fast day.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Aye," responded the other, "this is the fast day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ae mornin' I met Davie Drewry, an' 'twas the fast day.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading "Aye," responded the other, "this is the fast day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ae mornin' I met Davie Drewry, an' 'twas the fast day.
divisible by two
From this reading They willna even whustle.
quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form)
From this reading "Aye," responded the other, "this is the fast day.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Ae mornin' I met Davie Drewry, an' 'twas the fast day.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Aye," responded the other, "this is the fast day.
range of what one can know or understand
From this reading Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They wadna work that day, nae mair than on the Sabbath.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading Ae mornin' I met Davie Drewry, an' 'twas the fast day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ae mornin' I met Davie Drewry, an' 'twas the fast day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They wadna work that day, nae mair than on the Sabbath.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading They wadna work that day, nae mair than on the Sabbath.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading "Aye," responded the other, "this is the fast day.
past form of “respond” — show a response or a reaction to something
From this reading "Aye," responded the other, "this is the fast day.
a day of rest and worship: Sunday for most Christians; Saturday for the Jews and a few Christians; Friday for Muslims
From this reading They wadna work that day, nae mair than on the Sabbath.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.
a formal religious ceremony conferring a specific grace on those who receive it
From this reading Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.
rigidly accurate; allowing no deviation from a standard
From this reading Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading They wadna work that day, nae mair than on the Sabbath.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading They wadna work that day, nae mair than on the Sabbath.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Aye," responded the other, "this is the fast day.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They wadna work that day, nae mair than on the Sabbath.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "Aye," responded the other, "this is the fast day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ae mornin' I met Davie Drewry, an' 'twas the fast day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They wadna work that day, nae mair than on the Sabbath.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They willna even whustle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They willna even whustle.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading They wadna work that day, nae mair than on the Sabbath.
an old word for “you”, speaking to more than one person
From this reading Sabbath's the sacrament, ye ken, and they're maist awfu' strict aboot the fast day.
Chapter 9 of St. Cuthbert's by Robert E. (Robert Edward) Knowles holds 384 sentences, grouped into 77 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 9 holds 384 sentences of St. Cuthbert's, unabridged, divided into 77 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of St. Cuthbert's by Robert E. (Robert Edward) Knowles exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 384 sentences, grouped into 77 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 77 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 77 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 9 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 St. Cuthbert's by Robert E. (Robert Edward) Knowles on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3631 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #22008 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #22008, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 302 minutes of reading across 727 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through St. Cuthbert's section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of St. Cuthbert's 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 St. Cuthbert's, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
