Chapter 1 of The Blacksmith's Hammer is here in full — 49 sentences across 10 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Blacksmith's Hammer is here in full — 49 sentences across 10 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_. THE BRASS BELL; or, _The Chariot of Death_. THE IRON COLLAR; or, _Faustina and Syomara_. THE SILVER CROSS; or, _The Carpenter of Nazareth_. THE CASQUE'S LARK; or, _Victoria, the Mother of the Camps_.
Chapter 1 of The Blacksmith's Hammer is here in full — 49 sentences across 10 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/9 · 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.
plural of “camp” — temporary living quarters specially built by the army for soldiers
a light four-wheel horse-drawn ceremonial carriage
From this reading “THE BRASS BELL; or, _The Chariot of Death_.”
North American songbirds having a yellow breast
From this reading “THE CASQUE'S LARK; or, _Victoria, the Mother of the Camps_.”
a historic town in northern Israel that is mentioned in the Gospels as the home of Joseph and Mary
a member of the working class (not necessarily employed)
From this reading “History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.”
a fractional monetary unit of Japan and Indonesia and Cambodia; equal to one hundredth of a yen or rupiah or riel
an edge tool for cutting grass or crops; has a curved blade and a short handle
From this reading “History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.”
queen of Great Britain and Ireland and empress of India from 1837 to 1901; the last Hanoverian ruler of England (1819-1901)
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.
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 History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
from one side of something to the other
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
plural of “age” — how long something has existed
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading THE IRON COLLAR; or, _Faustina and Syomara_.
a hollow device made of metal that makes a ringing sound when struck
From this reading THE BRASS BELL; or, _The Chariot of Death_.
an alloy of copper and zinc
From this reading THE BRASS BELL; or, _The Chariot of Death_.
plural of “camp” — temporary living quarters specially built by the army for soldiers
From this reading THE CASQUE'S LARK; or, _Victoria, the Mother of the Camps_.
a woodworker who makes or repairs wooden objects
From this reading THE SILVER CROSS; or, _The Carpenter of Nazareth_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE CASQUE'S LARK; or, _Victoria, the Mother of the Camps_.
a light four-wheel horse-drawn ceremonial carriage
From this reading THE BRASS BELL; or, _The Chariot of Death_.
a band that fits around the neck and is usually folded over
From this reading THE IRON COLLAR; or, _Faustina and Syomara_.
travel across or pass over
From this reading THE SILVER CROSS; or, _The Carpenter of Nazareth_.
the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading THE BRASS BELL; or, _The Chariot of Death_.
a social unit living together
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE IRON COLLAR; or, _Faustina and Syomara_.
coins made of gold
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
the aggregate of past events
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
a heavy ductile magnetic metallic element; is silver-white in pure form but readily rusts; used in construction and tools and armament; plays a role in the transport of oxygen by the blood
From this reading THE IRON COLLAR; or, _Faustina and Syomara_.
a small island
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
North American songbirds having a yellow breast
From this reading THE CASQUE'S LARK; or, _Victoria, the Mother of the Camps_.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading THE CASQUE'S LARK; or, _Victoria, the Mother of the Camps_.
a historic town in northern Israel that is mentioned in the Gospels as the home of Joseph and Mary
From this reading THE SILVER CROSS; or, _The Carpenter of Nazareth_.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
a member of the working class (not necessarily employed)
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
a fractional monetary unit of Japan and Indonesia and Cambodia; equal to one hundredth of a yen or rupiah or riel
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
an edge tool for cutting grass or crops; has a curved blade and a short handle
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
a soft white precious univalent metallic element having the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal; occurs in argentite and in free form; used in coins and jewelry and tableware and photography
From this reading THE SILVER CROSS; or, _The Carpenter of Nazareth_.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE IRON COLLAR; or, _Faustina and Syomara_.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
queen of Great Britain and Ireland and empress of India from 1837 to 1901; the last Hanoverian ruler of England (1819-1901)
From this reading THE CASQUE'S LARK; or, _Victoria, the Mother of the Camps_.
a person who has never had sex
From this reading History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages THE GOLD SICKLE; or, _Hena the Virgin of the Isle of Sen_.
Chapter 1 of The Blacksmith's Hammer by Eugène Sue holds 49 sentences, grouped into 10 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 1 holds 49 sentences of The Blacksmith's Hammer, unabridged, divided into 10 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Blacksmith's Hammer by Eugène Sue exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 49 sentences, grouped into 10 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 10 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 10 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 1 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 Blacksmith's Hammer by Eugène Sue on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3764 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34987 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34987, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 313 minutes of reading across 753 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Blacksmith's Hammer section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 19 chapters of The Blacksmith's Hammer 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 Blacksmith's Hammer, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
