Chapter 5 of The Book of Dragons is here in full — 414 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of The Book of Dragons is here in full — 414 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince. "What you want to know." "I don't want to know anything," said Prince Tiresome. "Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin. "Don't you want to know how to settle the dragon before he settles you?"
Chapter 5 of The Book of Dragons is here in full — 414 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
any thing at all
From this reading “"I don't want to know anything," said Prince Tiresome.”
a creature of Teutonic mythology; usually represented as breathing fire and having a reptilian body and sometimes wings
From this reading “"Don't you want to know how to settle the dragon before he settles you?"”
suggestive of an elf in strangeness and otherworldliness
From this reading “"Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.”
a male member of a royal family other than the sovereign (especially the son of a sovereign)
From this reading “"If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince.”
settle into a position, usually on a surface or ground
From this reading “"Don't you want to know how to settle the dragon before he settles you?"”
plural of “settle” — a long wooden bench with a back
From this reading “"Don't you want to know how to settle the dragon before he settles you?"”
ludicrous, foolish
From this reading “"Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.”
so lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness
From this reading “"If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince.”
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 "Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.
any thing at all
From this reading "I don't want to know anything," said Prince Tiresome.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading "Don't you want to know how to settle the dragon before he settles you?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I don't want to know anything," said Prince Tiresome.
a creature of Teutonic mythology; usually represented as breathing fire and having a reptilian body and sometimes wings
From this reading "Don't you want to know how to settle the dragon before he settles you?"
suggestive of an elf in strangeness and otherworldliness
From this reading "Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.
divisible by two
From this reading "Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Don't you want to know how to settle the dragon before he settles you?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Don't you want to know how to settle the dragon before he settles you?"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I don't want to know anything," said Prince Tiresome.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "What you want to know."
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading "Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.
a male member of a royal family other than the sovereign (especially the son of a sovereign)
From this reading "If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince.
settle into a position, usually on a surface or ground
From this reading "Don't you want to know how to settle the dragon before he settles you?"
plural of “settle” — a long wooden bench with a back
From this reading "Don't you want to know how to settle the dragon before he settles you?"
ludicrous, foolish
From this reading "Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.
express in words
From this reading "If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading "Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading "Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading "Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.
so lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness
From this reading "If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "What you want to know."
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading "What you want to know."
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "If you tell me what?" said the tiresome Prince.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Then you're more of a silly even than I thought," said Elfin.
Chapter 5 of The Book of Dragons by E. (Edith) Nesbit holds 414 sentences, grouped into 83 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 5 holds 414 sentences of The Book of Dragons, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of The Book of Dragons by E. (Edith) Nesbit exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 414 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 5 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 Book of Dragons by E. (Edith) Nesbit on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2126 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #23661 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #23661, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 177 minutes of reading across 426 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Book of Dragons section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of The Book of Dragons 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 Book of Dragons, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
