Chapter 8 of The American is here in full — 332 sentences across 67 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The American is here in full — 332 sentences across 67 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly. Bellegarde turned and gave him a quick look. “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.” “I know that very well.” “If it is because you don’t trust me, you are very right,” said Bellegarde.
Chapter 8 of The American is here in full — 332 sentences across 67 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/66 · 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 and without warning
From this reading ““Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.”
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading ““Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.”
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading “Bellegarde turned and gave him a quick look.”
United States film actor (born in 1925)
From this reading ““Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.”
challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading ““Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.””
accomplished rapidly and without delay
From this reading “Bellegarde turned and gave him a quick look.”
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading ““Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.”
something (as property) held by one party (the trustee) for the benefit of another (the beneficiary)
From this reading ““If it is because you don’t trust me, you are very right,” said Bellegarde.”
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 Bellegarde turned and gave him a quick look.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading “Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.
quickly and without warning
From this reading “Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Bellegarde turned and gave him a quick look.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “If it is because you don’t trust me, you are very right,” said Bellegarde.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
for the reason that
From this reading “If it is because you don’t trust me, you are very right,” said Bellegarde.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading “Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bellegarde turned and gave him a quick look.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “If it is because you don’t trust me, you are very right,” said Bellegarde.
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading Bellegarde turned and gave him a quick look.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Bellegarde turned and gave him a quick look.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “If it is because you don’t trust me, you are very right,” said Bellegarde.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “If it is because you don’t trust me, you are very right,” said Bellegarde.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “I know that very well.”
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Bellegarde turned and gave him a quick look.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
United States film actor (born in 1925)
From this reading “Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
challenge the accuracy, probity, or propriety of
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
accomplished rapidly and without delay
From this reading Bellegarde turned and gave him a quick look.
precisely, exactly
From this reading “If it is because you don’t trust me, you are very right,” said Bellegarde.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “If it is because you don’t trust me, you are very right,” said Bellegarde.
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading “Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading “Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.
express in words
From this reading “Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
something (as property) held by one party (the trustee) for the benefit of another (the beneficiary)
From this reading “If it is because you don’t trust me, you are very right,” said Bellegarde.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading Bellegarde turned and gave him a quick look.
precisely as stated
From this reading “I know that very well.”
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading “I know that very well.”
but in spite of that
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Now that I think of it, you have never yet asked me a question about her.”
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Tell me something about your sister,” Newman began abruptly.
Chapter 8 of The American by Henry James holds 332 sentences, grouped into 67 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 8 holds 332 sentences of The American, unabridged, divided into 67 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The American by Henry James exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 332 sentences, grouped into 67 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 67 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 67 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 8 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 American by Henry James on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8959 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #177 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #177, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1792 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The American section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of The American 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 American, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
