Chapter XII of The Black Patch, “Vivian Explains,” is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter XII of The Black Patch, “Vivian Explains,” is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom. Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms. Suddenly she stopped. "Do you mean what you say?" she asked, hesitating. "I do," he replied firmly.
Chapter XII of The Black Patch, “Vivian Explains,” is here in full — 202 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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 woman who guided Dante through Paradise in the Divine Comedy
From this reading “Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.”
very opposed in nature or character or purpose
From this reading “Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.”
accepted or habitual practice
From this reading “Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.”
an abrupt excited utterance
From this reading “Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.”
with resolute determination
From this reading “"I do," he replied firmly.”
lacking decisiveness of character; unable to act or decide quickly or firmly
From this reading “"Do you mean what you say?" she asked, hesitating.”
not in physical motion
From this reading “Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.”
a crowd especially of ordinary or undistinguished persons or things
From this reading “Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.”
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 “Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.”
In this reading “Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.”
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.
(followed by “to”) in agreement with or accordant with
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
weapons considered collectively
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "Do you mean what you say?" she asked, hesitating.
the woman who guided Dante through Paradise in the Divine Comedy
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
very opposed in nature or character or purpose
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
accepted or habitual practice
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "Do you mean what you say?" she asked, hesitating.
at any time
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
an abrupt excited utterance
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
with resolute determination
From this reading "I do," he replied firmly.
at or to or toward the front
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I do," he replied firmly.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
lacking decisiveness of character; unable to act or decide quickly or firmly
From this reading "Do you mean what you say?" she asked, hesitating.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I do," he replied firmly.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
of greater importance or stature or rank
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading "Do you mean what you say?" she asked, hesitating.
not in physical motion
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
not any; not one
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
inflected form of “run” — move fast by using one's feet, with one foot off the ground at any given time
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
a statement that expresses a personal opinion or belief or adds information
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading "I do," he replied firmly.
a crowd especially of ordinary or undistinguished persons or things
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
express in words
From this reading "Do you mean what you say?" she asked, hesitating.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Suddenly she stopped.
marked by absence of sound
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
a facial expression characterized by turning up the corners of the mouth; usually shows pleasure or amusement
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
(of a nose) blocked
From this reading Suddenly she stopped.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Suddenly she stopped.
the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
propel through the air
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Major Ruck made no remark, but stood silent and motionless, ever smiling, according to his custom.
communicated in words
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Beatrice, on the contrary, uttered an exclamation of surprise, and ran forward to throw herself into Vivian's arms.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "Do you mean what you say?" she asked, hesitating.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Do you mean what you say?" she asked, hesitating.
Chapter 12 of The Black Patch by Fergus Hume holds 202 sentences, grouped into 41 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 12 holds 202 sentences of The Black Patch, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of The Black Patch by Fergus Hume exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 202 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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 12 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 Black Patch by Fergus Hume on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5681 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #55305 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #55305, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 473 minutes of reading across 1137 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Black Patch section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of The Black Patch 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 Black Patch, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
