Chapter 23 of The Abbess Of Vlaye is here in full — 291 sentences across 59 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of The Abbess Of Vlaye is here in full — 291 sentences across 59 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A NIGHT BY THE RIVER. The Countess knew that her knees were shaking under her. The gaze, too, of the men who watched was dreadful to her. She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding. And she despaired.
Chapter 23 of The Abbess Of Vlaye is here in full — 291 sentences across 59 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/58 · 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.
female equivalent of a count or earl
From this reading “The Countess knew that her knees were shaking under her.”
past form of “despair” — abandon hope; give up hope; lose heart
From this reading “And she despaired.”
a square scarf that is folded into a triangle and worn over the head or about the neck
From this reading “She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.”
plural of “limb” — one of the jointed appendages of an animal used for locomotion or grasping: arm; leg; wing; flipper
From this reading “She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.”
make a shift in or exchange of
From this reading “She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.”
moving as on a slippery surface
From this reading “She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.”
past form of “twine” — spin, wind, or twist together
From this reading “She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.”
inclined to yield to argument or influence or control
From this reading “She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.”
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.
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 A NIGHT BY THE RIVER.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And she despaired.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading A NIGHT BY THE RIVER.
female equivalent of a count or earl
From this reading The Countess knew that her knees were shaking under her.
past form of “despair” — abandon hope; give up hope; lose heart
From this reading And she despaired.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading The gaze, too, of the men who watched was dreadful to her.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
a long fixed look
From this reading The gaze, too, of the men who watched was dreadful to her.
a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
the vertical dimension of extension; distance from the base of something to the top
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading The Countess knew that her knees were shaking under her.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
a square scarf that is folded into a triangle and worn over the head or about the neck
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
plural of “knee” — hinge joint in the human leg connecting the tibia and fibula with the femur and protected in front by the patella
From this reading The Countess knew that her knees were shaking under her.
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 The Countess knew that her knees were shaking under her.
plural of “limb” — one of the jointed appendages of an animal used for locomotion or grasping: arm; leg; wing; flipper
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
the force of workers available
From this reading The gaze, too, of the men who watched was dreadful to her.
a change of position that does not entail a change of location
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading A NIGHT BY THE RIVER.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The gaze, too, of the men who watched was dreadful to her.
a large natural stream of water (larger than a creek)
From this reading A NIGHT BY THE RIVER.
the act of causing something to move up and down (or back and forth) with quick movements
From this reading The Countess knew that her knees were shaking under her.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
make a shift in or exchange of
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
a particular situation
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
moving as on a slippery surface
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The Countess knew that her knees were shaking under her.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading A NIGHT BY THE RIVER.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The gaze, too, of the men who watched was dreadful to her.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading The gaze, too, of the men who watched was dreadful to her.
past form of “twine” — spin, wind, or twist together
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading The Countess knew that her knees were shaking under her.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The gaze, too, of the men who watched was dreadful to her.
past form of “watch” — look attentively
From this reading The gaze, too, of the men who watched was dreadful to her.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading The Countess knew that her knees were shaking under her.
which person or people
From this reading The gaze, too, of the men who watched was dreadful to her.
in the company of; together with
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
inclined to yield to argument or influence or control
From this reading She felt her feet slipping from the shoes; she felt the kerchief, that, twined in her hair, gave her height, shift with the movement; she felt her limbs yielding.
Chapter 23 of The Abbess Of Vlaye by Stanley John Weyman holds 291 sentences, grouped into 59 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 23 holds 291 sentences of The Abbess Of Vlaye, unabridged, divided into 59 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of The Abbess Of Vlaye by Stanley John Weyman exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 291 sentences, grouped into 59 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 59 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 59 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 23 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 The Abbess Of Vlaye by Stanley John Weyman on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8200 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #38910 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #38910, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1640 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Abbess Of Vlaye section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of The Abbess Of Vlaye 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 The Abbess Of Vlaye, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
