Chapter 7 of Taking the Bastile is here in full — 146 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of Taking the Bastile is here in full — 146 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE FIRST BLOOD. Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris. A great flame rose before them. Billet pointed out the ruddy glare. "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
Chapter 7 of Taking the Bastile is here in full — 146 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/29 · 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 short personal letter
From this reading “Billet pointed out the ruddy glare.”
plural of “campfire” — a small outdoor fire for warmth or cooking (as at a camp)
From this reading “"They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.”
the act of encamping and living in tents in a camp
From this reading “"They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.”
a light within the field of vision that is brighter than the brightness to which the eyes are adapted
From this reading “Billet pointed out the ruddy glare.”
inclined to a healthy reddish color often associated with outdoor life
From this reading “Billet pointed out the ruddy glare.”
a residential district located on the outskirts of a city
From this reading “Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.”
accumulating and becoming more intense
From this reading “Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.”
plural of “traveler” — a person who changes location
From this reading “Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.”
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 “Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.”
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 Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading A great flame rose before them.
a short personal letter
From this reading Billet pointed out the ruddy glare.
The red fluid that circulates in the heart and blood vessels.
From this reading THE FIRST BLOOD.
plural of “campfire” — a small outdoor fire for warmth or cooking (as at a camp)
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
the act of encamping and living in tents in a camp
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading THE FIRST BLOOD.
A hot glowing body of ignited gas produced by fire.
From this reading A great flame rose before them.
a light within the field of vision that is brighter than the brightness to which the eyes are adapted
From this reading Billet pointed out the ruddy glare.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading A great flame rose before them.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
a white soft metallic element that tarnishes readily; occurs in rare earth minerals and is usually classified as a rare earth
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
set afire or burning
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Billet pointed out the ruddy glare.
the capital and largest city of France; and international center of culture and commerce
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
having a point
From this reading Billet pointed out the ruddy glare.
past form of “reach” — reach a destination, either real or abstract
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading A great flame rose before them.
inclined to a healthy reddish color often associated with outdoor life
From this reading Billet pointed out the ruddy glare.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
a residential district located on the outskirts of a city
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE FIRST BLOOD.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading A great flame rose before them.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
accumulating and becoming more intense
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
plural of “traveler” — a person who changes location
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
soldiers collectively
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Night was thickening as the two travelers reached La Villette, a suburb of Paris.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "They are troops camping out," said Pitou; "Can't you see that, and they have lighted campfires.
Chapter 7 of Taking the Bastile by Alexandre Dumas holds 146 sentences, grouped into 30 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 7 holds 146 sentences of Taking the Bastile, unabridged, divided into 30 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of Taking the Bastile by Alexandre Dumas exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 146 sentences, grouped into 30 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 30 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 30 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 7 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 Taking the Bastile by Alexandre Dumas on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4063 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #45424 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #45424, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 338 minutes of reading across 813 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Taking the Bastile section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of Taking the Bastile 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 Taking the Bastile, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
