Chapter 3 of The Ancient City is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Ancient City is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
JOHN. “Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?” MYSELF. “The very thing--it is such a lovely evening!” Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
Chapter 3 of The Ancient City is here in full — 422 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading “Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.”
the process of taking in and expelling air during breathing
From this reading “Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.”
possessive form of “child” — a young person of either sex
plural of “escapade” — a wild and exciting undertaking (not necessarily lawful)
From this reading “Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.”
a person or animal that is markedly unusual or deformed
From this reading “Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.”
become part of; become a member of a group or organization
From this reading ““Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?””
appealing to the emotions as well as the eye
From this reading ““The very thing--it is such a lovely evening!””
a leisurely walk (usually in some public place)
From this reading ““Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?””
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 very thing--it is such a lovely evening!””
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 “The very thing--it is such a lovely evening!”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?”
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
the process of taking in and expelling air during breathing
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
possessive form of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
plural of “escapade” — a wild and exciting undertaking (not necessarily lawful)
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading “The very thing--it is such a lovely evening!”
a person or animal that is markedly unusual or deformed
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “The very thing--it is such a lovely evening!”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “The very thing--it is such a lovely evening!”
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading JOHN.
become part of; become a member of a group or organization
From this reading “Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?”
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
appealing to the emotions as well as the eye
From this reading “The very thing--it is such a lovely evening!”
engage in
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading MYSELF.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
and nothing more
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading “Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?”
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
a leisurely walk (usually in some public place)
From this reading “Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?”
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading “The very thing--it is such a lovely evening!”
express a supposition
From this reading “Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “The very thing--it is such a lovely evening!”
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading “Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?”
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
a special situation
From this reading “The very thing--it is such a lovely evening!”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
precisely as stated
From this reading “The very thing--it is such a lovely evening!”
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading “Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?”
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “Suppose we stroll out that way and join them?”
marked by extreme lack of restraint or control
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Then to Aunt Di, under my breath, “You see, it is only one of Iris’s wild escapades, aunt; we must make light of it as a child’s freak.
Chapter 3 of The Ancient City by Constance Fenimore Woolson holds 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 3 holds 422 sentences of The Ancient City, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Ancient City by Constance Fenimore Woolson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 422 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 3 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.
