Chapter 6 of The Best Letters of Charles Lamb is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of The Best Letters of Charles Lamb is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Come back one day. C. LAMB. [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure. See next letter. [2] Godwin.
Chapter 6 of The Best Letters of Charles Lamb is here in full — 419 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.
an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
From this reading “[1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.”
marked for certain death
From this reading “[1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.”
an act that fails
From this reading “[1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.”
the property of having two dimensions
From this reading “[1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.”
young sheep
From this reading “C. LAMB.”
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading “See next letter.”
a secret scheme to do something (especially something underhand or illegal)
From this reading “[1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.”
indicating exactness or preciseness
From this reading “[1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.”
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 [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading [2] Godwin.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Come back one day.
a degree on the centigrade scale of temperature
From this reading C. LAMB.
an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Come back one day.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading Come back one day.
marked for certain death
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
an act that fails
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
the property of having two dimensions
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading [2] Godwin.
a nonmetallic univalent element that is normally a colorless and odorless highly flammable diatomic gas; the simplest and lightest and most abundant element in the universe
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
young sheep
From this reading C. LAMB.
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading See next letter.
a form of address for a man
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading See next letter.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Come back one day.
a secret scheme to do something (especially something underhand or illegal)
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
indicating exactness or preciseness
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading See next letter.
the quality of being unimportant and petty or frivolous
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading [1] It was precisely this flatness, this slightness of plot and catastrophe, that doomed "Mr. H." to failure.
Chapter 6 of The Best Letters of Charles Lamb by Charles Lamb holds 419 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 6 holds 419 sentences of The Best Letters of Charles Lamb, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of The Best Letters of Charles Lamb by Charles Lamb exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 419 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 6 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 Best Letters of Charles Lamb by Charles Lamb on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4312 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #10125 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #10125, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 359 minutes of reading across 863 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Best Letters of Charles Lamb section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 10 chapters of The Best Letters of Charles Lamb 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 Best Letters of Charles Lamb, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
