Chapter 4 of The book of Martha is here in full — 462 sentences across 93 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The book of Martha is here in full — 462 sentences across 93 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Yes, Madam.” “And the stationery at the back?” “Yes, Madam.” “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?” “It all depends which way you are standing, Madam.”
Chapter 4 of The book of Martha is here in full — 462 sentences across 93 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/92 · 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.
navigational instrument for finding directions
From this reading ““Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?””
third-person singular of “depend” — be contingent upon (something that is elided)
From this reading ““It all depends which way you are standing, Madam.””
a woman of refinement
From this reading ““Yes, Madam.””
plural of “point” — a geometric element that has position but no extension
From this reading ““Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?””
having a supporting base
From this reading ““It all depends which way you are standing, Madam.””
paper cut to an appropriate size for writing letters; usually with matching envelopes
From this reading ““And the stationery at the back?””
successive (without a break)
From this reading ““Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?””
an affirmative
From this reading ““Yes, Madam.””
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.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “And the stationery at the back?”
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “It all depends which way you are standing, Madam.”
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading “And the stationery at the back?”
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading “And the stationery at the back?”
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
navigational instrument for finding directions
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
third-person singular of “depend” — be contingent upon (something that is elided)
From this reading “It all depends which way you are standing, Madam.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “It all depends which way you are standing, Madam.”
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
a woman of refinement
From this reading “Yes, Madam.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
plural of “point” — a geometric element that has position but no extension
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
having a supporting base
From this reading “It all depends which way you are standing, Madam.”
paper cut to an appropriate size for writing letters; usually with matching envelopes
From this reading “And the stationery at the back?”
successive (without a break)
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “And the stationery at the back?”
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
precisely as stated
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading “It all depends which way you are standing, Madam.”
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading “Very well then, how can all these points of the compass be straight through on the left?”
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading “It all depends which way you are standing, Madam.”
an affirmative
From this reading “Yes, Madam.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “It all depends which way you are standing, Madam.”
Chapter 4 of The book of Martha by Mrs. Dowdall holds 462 sentences, grouped into 93 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 462 sentences of The book of Martha, unabridged, divided into 93 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The book of Martha by Mrs. Dowdall exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 462 sentences, grouped into 93 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 93 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 93 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 book of Martha by Mrs. Dowdall on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3559 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #71196 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #71196, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 296 minutes of reading across 712 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The book of Martha section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of The book of Martha 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 Martha, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
