Chapter 1 of The Ancient City is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Ancient City is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE. No. CCXCV.--DECEMBER, 1874.--Vol. L. THE ANCIENT CITY. IN TWO PARTS.--PART I. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
Chapter 1 of The Ancient City is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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 “brother” — a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading “Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.”
the legislature of the United States government
From this reading “Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.”
the last (12th) month of the year
From this reading “No. CCXCV.--DECEMBER, 1874.--Vol. L.”
someone who plays the harp
From this reading “Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.”
a professional person trained in library science and engaged in library services
From this reading “Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.”
a periodic publication containing pictures and stories and articles of interest to those who purchase it or subscribe to it
From this reading “NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE.”
a periodical that is published every month (or 12 issues per year)
From this reading “NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE.”
the capital of the United States in the District of Columbia and a tourist mecca; George Washington commissioned Charles L'Enfant to lay out the city in 1791
From this reading “Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.”
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 “THE ANCIENT CITY.”
In this reading “IN TWO PARTS.--PART I.”
In this reading “Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading No. CCXCV.--DECEMBER, 1874.--Vol. L.
(followed by “to”) in agreement with or accordant with
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
Belonging to the very distant past and no longer in existence or deeply revered.
From this reading THE ANCIENT CITY.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
plural of “brother” — a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading No. CCXCV.--DECEMBER, 1874.--Vol. L.
a large and densely populated urban area; may include several independent administrative districts
From this reading THE ANCIENT CITY.
the legislature of the United States government
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
the last (12th) month of the year
From this reading No. CCXCV.--DECEMBER, 1874.--Vol. L.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
someone who plays the harp
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading IN TWO PARTS.--PART I.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading IN TWO PARTS.--PART I.
a metric unit of capacity, formerly defined as the volume of one kilogram of pure water under standard conditions; now equal to 1,000 cubic centimeters (or approximately 1.75 pints)
From this reading No. CCXCV.--DECEMBER, 1874.--Vol. L.
a professional person trained in library science and engaged in library services
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
a periodic publication containing pictures and stories and articles of interest to those who purchase it or subscribe to it
From this reading NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE.
a periodical that is published every month (or 12 issues per year)
From this reading NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE.
not any; not one
From this reading No. CCXCV.--DECEMBER, 1874.--Vol. L.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading IN TWO PARTS.--PART I.
the local environment
From this reading IN TWO PARTS.--PART I.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE ANCIENT CITY.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading IN TWO PARTS.--PART I.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading No. CCXCV.--DECEMBER, 1874.--Vol. L.
the capital of the United States in the District of Columbia and a tourist mecca; George Washington commissioned Charles L'Enfant to lay out the city in 1791
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
a period of time containing 365 (or 366) days
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by Harper and Brothers, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
Chapter 1 of The Ancient City by Constance Fenimore Woolson holds 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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 1 holds 416 sentences of The Ancient City, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Ancient City by Constance Fenimore Woolson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 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.
Common questions about reading The Ancient City by Constance Fenimore Woolson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1656 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #52770 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #52770, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 138 minutes of reading across 332 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Ancient City section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of The Ancient City 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 Ancient City, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
