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Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20
Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20

Chapter I · Chapter 1

Chapter 1 of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20 is here in full — 80 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20
Context Illustration Reading 1/16 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
Volume 20.
Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.
Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.
From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.
Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.
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LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20

Chapter I · Chapter 1

Chapter 1 of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20 is here in full — 80 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/16 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
Volume 20.
Line 2
Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.
/kənˈteɪnz ðə ˈdevəl ɪn hel ˈneɪbər ˈpiːtərz mer hiː ˈʃʊrli mʌst biː rɔːŋ huː ˈlʌvɪŋ fɪrz ənd dʌz nɑːt fliː wen ˈbjuːti fɜːrst əˈpɪrz/
Line 3
Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.
Line 4
From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.
Line 5
Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.

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.

advances noun US /ədˈvænsəz/

plural of “advance” — a movement forward

From this reading “From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.”

Contains verb US /kənˈteɪnz/

third-person singular of “contain” — include or contain; have as a component

From this reading “Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.”

flee verb US /fliː/

run away quickly

From this reading “Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.”

languish verb US /ˈlæŋɡwɪʃ/

lose vigor, health, or flesh, as through grief

From this reading “From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.”

Mare noun US /mer/

female equine animal

From this reading “Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.”

mortals noun US /ˈmɔːrtəlz/

plural of “mortal” — a human being

From this reading “Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.”

Neighbor noun US /ˈneɪbər/

a person who lives (or is located) near another

From this reading “Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.”

Peter's noun US /ˈpiːtərz/

possessive form of “peter” — disciple of Jesus and leader of the Apostles; regarded by Catholics as the vicar of Christ on earth and first Pope

From this reading “Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.”

All words in this reading · 78

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.

20

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

From this reading Volume 20.

adeterminerUS /ə/

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

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

advancesnounUS /ədˈvænsəz/

plural of “advance” — a movement forward

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

AndconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

appearsverbUS /əˈpɪrz/

third-person singular of “appear” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

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

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

beautynounUS /ˈbjuːti/

the qualities that give pleasure to the senses

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

betteradjectiveUS /ˈbetər/

(comparative of “good”) superior to another (of the same class or set or kind) in excellence or quality or desirability or suitability; more highly skilled than another

From this reading Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.

burnverbUS /bɜːrn/

To consume or be consumed by fire.

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

causesnounUS /ˈkɑːzəz/

plural of “cause” — events that provide the generative force that is the origin of something

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

charmsnounUS /tʃɑːrmz/

plural of “charm” — attractiveness that interests or pleases or stimulates

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

ContainsverbUS /kənˈteɪnz/

third-person singular of “contain” — include or contain; have as a component

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

dangersnounUS /ˈdeɪndʒərz/

plural of “danger” — the condition of being susceptible to harm or injury

From this reading Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.

DevilnounUS /ˈdevəl/

(Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

dieverbUS /daɪ/

pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

divineadjectiveUS /dɪˈvaɪn/

emanating from God

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

doauxiliary verbUS /duː/

used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis

From this reading Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.

doesauxiliary verbUS /dʌz/

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

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

eyesnounUS /aɪz/

opinion or judgment

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

FAIRadjectiveUS /fer/

free from favoritism or self-interest or bias or deception; conforming with established standards or rules

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

famenounUS /feɪm/

the state or quality of being widely honored and acclaimed

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

FaradverbUS /fɑːr/

to a considerable degree; very much

From this reading Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.

fearsnounUS /fɪrz/

plural of “fear” — an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight)

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

fingersnounUS /ˈfɪŋɡərz/

plural of “finger” — any of the terminal members of the hand (sometimes excepting the thumb)

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

firstadjectiveUS /fɜːrst/

preceding all others in time or space or degree

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

flamenounUS /fleɪm/

A hot glowing body of ignited gas produced by fire.

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

fleeverbUS /fliː/

run away quickly

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

FromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

HEpronounUS /hiː/

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

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

heartnounUS /hɑːrt/

the locus of feelings and intuitions

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

HellnounUS /hel/

any place of pain and turmoil

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

hereadverbUS /hiːr/

in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is

From this reading Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

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

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

I'll

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

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

I've

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

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

knowverbUS /noʊ/

be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

languishverbUS /ˈlæŋɡwɪʃ/

lose vigor, health, or flesh, as through grief

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

lovenounUS /lʌv/

a strong positive emotion of regard and affection

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

lovingadjectiveUS /ˈlʌvɪŋ/

feeling or showing love and affection

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

MarenounUS /mer/

female equine animal

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

mightmodal verbUS /maɪt/

used to say something is possible but not certain

From this reading Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.

moreadjectiveUS /mɔːr/

(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

mortalsnounUS /ˈmɔːrtəlz/

plural of “mortal” — a human being

From this reading Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.

mustmodal verbUS /mʌst/

used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

neednounUS /niːd/

a condition requiring relief

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

NeighbornounUS /ˈneɪbər/

a person who lives (or is located) near another

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

NodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

occasionnounUS /əˈkeɪʒən/

an event that occurs at a critical time

From this reading Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/

used to join alternatives or possibilities

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

Peter'snounUS /ˈpiːtərz/

possessive form of “peter” — disciple of Jesus and leader of the Apostles; regarded by Catholics as the vicar of Christ on earth and first Pope

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

pursueverbUS /pərˈsuː/

carry out or participate in an activity; be involved in

From this reading Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.

riseverbUS /raɪz/

move upward

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

seemsverbUS /siːmz/

third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

sensationnounUS /senˈseɪʃən/

an unelaborated elementary awareness of stimulation

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

softadjectiveUS /sɑːft/

yielding readily to pressure or weight

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

SomeadjectiveUS /sʌm/

(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

spellverbUS /spel/

orally recite the letters of or give the spelling of

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

surelyadverbUS /ˈʃʊrli/

definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

tellverbUS /tel/

express in words

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

thereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

There's

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

From this reading Far better surely mortals here might do; There's no occasion dangers to pursue.

throughprepositionUS /θruː/

from one end or side of something to the other

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

VolumenounUS /ˈvɑːljuːm/

the amount of 3-dimensional space occupied by an object

From this reading Volume 20.

WhatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

wrongadjectiveUS /rɔːŋ/

not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth

From this reading Contains: The Devil in Hell Neighbor Peter's Mare HE surely must be wrong who loving fears; And does not flee when beauty first appears.

YepronounUS /jiː/

an old word for “you”, speaking to more than one person

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

youpronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading From you a soft sensation seems to rise, And, to the heart, advances through the eyes; What there it causes I've no need to tell: Some die of love, or languish in the spell.

yourdeterminerUS /jɔːr/

belonging to the person or people being spoken to

From this reading Ye FAIR, with charms divine, I know your fame; No more I'll burn my fingers in the flame.

Chapter 1 of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20 by Jean de La Fontaine holds 80 sentences, grouped into 16 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.

What does chapter 1 of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20 contain?

Chapter 1 holds 80 sentences of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20, unabridged, divided into 16 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 1 of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20 by Jean de La Fontaine exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 80 sentences, grouped into 16 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 Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20?

Work through the 16 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 16 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 Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20

Common questions about reading Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20 by Jean de La Fontaine on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20?

Yes. All 80 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #5294 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20 is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #5294, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20 take to read?

About 6 minutes of reading across 16 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20 section by section

How to work through Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20 section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

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  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 Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20

Words and structures a reader meets early in Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Volume
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Contains
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Devil
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Neighbor
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Tales and Novels of J. de La Fontaine — Volume 20; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.