Chapter 23 of The bacillus of beauty is here in full — 142 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of The bacillus of beauty is here in full — 142 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE SUDDENNESS OF DEATH. The Nicaragua, March 29. How could I have known that he would die? I had never seen any one die. It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
Chapter 23 of The bacillus of beauty is here in full — 142 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/28 · 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.
a brittle transparent solid with irregular atomic structure
From this reading “It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.”
march in a procession
From this reading “The Nicaragua, March 29.”
a republic in Central America; achieved independence from Spain in 1821
From this reading “The Nicaragua, March 29.”
having been turned so that the bottom is no longer the bottom
From this reading “It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.”
characterized by feeling or showing fond affection for
From this reading “It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.”
(American football) an attempt to advance the ball by running into the line
From this reading “It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.”
the quality of happening with headlong haste or without warning
From this reading “THE SUDDENNESS OF DEATH.”
fermented juice (of grapes especially)
From this reading “It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.”
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 The Nicaragua, March 29.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
anew
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading I had never seen any one die.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading How could I have known that he would die?
the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading THE SUDDENNESS OF DEATH.
pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading How could I have known that he would die?
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
a brittle transparent solid with irregular atomic structure
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading I had never seen any one die.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading How could I have known that he would die?
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading How could I have known that he would die?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading How could I have known that he would die?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading How could I have known that he would die?
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
apprehended with certainty
From this reading How could I have known that he would die?
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
march in a procession
From this reading The Nicaragua, March 29.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading I had never seen any one die.
a republic in Central America; achieved independence from Spain in 1821
From this reading The Nicaragua, March 29.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE SUDDENNESS OF DEATH.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading I had never seen any one die.
having been turned so that the bottom is no longer the bottom
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
characterized by feeling or showing fond affection for
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
precisely, exactly
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
(American football) an attempt to advance the ball by running into the line
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading I had never seen any one die.
the quality of happening with headlong haste or without warning
From this reading THE SUDDENNESS OF DEATH.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading How could I have known that he would die?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE SUDDENNESS OF DEATH.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
fermented juice (of grapes especially)
From this reading It was as if life were a precious wine rushing from an overturned glass that I could not put right again.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading How could I have known that he would die?
Chapter 23 of The bacillus of beauty by Harriet Stark holds 142 sentences, grouped into 29 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 142 sentences of The bacillus of beauty, unabridged, divided into 29 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of The bacillus of beauty by Harriet Stark exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 142 sentences, grouped into 29 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 29 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 29 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.
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Yes. All 5660 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #9081 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #9081, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 471 minutes of reading across 1132 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The bacillus of beauty section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of The bacillus of beauty 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 bacillus of beauty, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
