Chapter 4 of The Bars of Iron is here in full — 362 sentences across 73 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Bars of Iron is here in full — 362 sentences across 73 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer. "My poor children! They're never out of trouble." Avery stood still. She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
Chapter 4 of The Bars of Iron is here in full — 362 sentences across 73 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/72 · 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.
inflected form of “flee” — run away quickly
From this reading “She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.”
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading “She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.”
past form of “moan” — indicate pain, discomfort, or displeasure
From this reading “THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer.”
possessive form of “mother” — a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading “THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer.”
get or find back; recover the use of
From this reading “She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.”
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading “She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.”
the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds)
From this reading “She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.”
a source of difficulty
From this reading “They're never out of trouble."”
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.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Avery stood still.
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading "My poor children!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
inflected form of “flee” — run away quickly
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer.
a polite name for any woman
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer.
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
past form of “moan” — indicate pain, discomfort, or displeasure
From this reading THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer.
possessive form of “mother” — a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "My poor children!
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading They're never out of trouble."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading They're never out of trouble."
and nothing more
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading They're never out of trouble."
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading "My poor children!
get or find back; recover the use of
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
Identical; not different.
From this reading THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
not in physical motion
From this reading Avery stood still.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Avery stood still.
the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds)
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE MOTHER'S HELP "It's always the same," moaned Mrs. Lorimer.
in or at that place or location
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They're never out of trouble."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
a source of difficulty
From this reading They're never out of trouble."
a formal word for “on”
From this reading She had fled to the drawing-room to recover herself, only to find the lady of the house lying in tears upon the sofa there.
Chapter 4 of The Bars of Iron by Ethel M. (Ethel May) Dell holds 362 sentences, grouped into 73 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 4 holds 362 sentences of The Bars of Iron, unabridged, divided into 73 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Bars of Iron by Ethel M. (Ethel May) Dell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 362 sentences, grouped into 73 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 73 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 73 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 4 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 Bars of Iron by Ethel M. (Ethel May) Dell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 13358 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #10509 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #10509, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2672 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Bars of Iron section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of The Bars of Iron 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 Bars of Iron, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
