Chapter 20 of Tarr is here in full — 98 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of Tarr is here in full — 98 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew. The streets were loftily ignorant of her affairs. Thin walls dyked in affairs and happenings. Ha ha! the importance of our actions! Is it more than the kissing of the bricks?
Chapter 20 of Tarr is here in full — 98 sentences across 20 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/19 · 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.
plural of “action” — something done (usually as opposed to something said)
From this reading “Ha ha! the importance of our actions!”
stay clear from; keep away from; keep out of the way of someone or something
From this reading “Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.”
plural of “brick” — rectangular block of clay baked by the sun or in a kiln; used as a building or paving material
From this reading “Is it more than the kissing of the bricks?”
plural of “happening” — an event that happens
From this reading “Thin walls dyked in affairs and happenings.”
uneducated in general; lacking knowledge or sophistication
From this reading “The streets were loftily ignorant of her affairs.”
affectionate play (or foreplay without contact with the genital organs)
From this reading “Is it more than the kissing of the bricks?”
a future prospect or potential
From this reading “Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.”
marked by obliqueness or indirection in speech or conduct
From this reading “Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.”
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 “Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.”
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 Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
plural of “action” — something done (usually as opposed to something said)
From this reading Ha ha! the importance of our actions!
matters of personal concern
From this reading The streets were loftily ignorant of her affairs.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Thin walls dyked in affairs and happenings.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
stay clear from; keep away from; keep out of the way of someone or something
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
plural of “brick” — rectangular block of clay baked by the sun or in a kiln; used as a building or paving material
From this reading Is it more than the kissing of the bricks?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Thin walls dyked in affairs and happenings.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
(astronomy) the angular distance of a celestial point measured westward along the celestial equator from the zenith crossing; the right ascension for an observer at a particular location and time of day
From this reading Ha ha! the importance of our actions!
plural of “happening” — an event that happens
From this reading Thin walls dyked in affairs and happenings.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
uneducated in general; lacking knowledge or sophistication
From this reading The streets were loftily ignorant of her affairs.
the quality of being important and worthy of note
From this reading Ha ha! the importance of our actions!
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Is it more than the kissing of the bricks?
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Is it more than the kissing of the bricks?
affectionate play (or foreplay without contact with the genital organs)
From this reading Is it more than the kissing of the bricks?
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
in a lofty manner
From this reading The streets were loftily ignorant of her affairs.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
a formally arranged gathering
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading Is it more than the kissing of the bricks?
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading Ha ha! the importance of our actions!
a future prospect or potential
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
marked by obliqueness or indirection in speech or conduct
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
plural of “street” — a thoroughfare (usually including sidewalks) that is lined with buildings
From this reading The streets were loftily ignorant of her affairs.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading Is it more than the kissing of the bricks?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
Having little thickness or extent.
From this reading Thin walls dyked in affairs and happenings.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
plural of “wall” — 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 Thin walls dyked in affairs and happenings.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Bertha made her way home in a roundabout fashion to avoid the possibility of meeting any one she knew.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The streets were loftily ignorant of her affairs.
Chapter 20 of Tarr by Wyndham Lewis holds 98 sentences, grouped into 20 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 20 holds 98 sentences of Tarr, unabridged, divided into 20 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of Tarr by Wyndham Lewis exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 98 sentences, grouped into 20 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 20 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 20 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 20 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 Tarr by Wyndham Lewis on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8072 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #58340 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #58340, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1615 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Tarr section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of Tarr 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 Tarr, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
