Chapter 12 of The Branding Needle is here in full — 108 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of The Branding Needle is here in full — 108 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AT BAY. What noise is that? It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude. Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped. Whence does that multitude proceed?
Chapter 12 of The Branding Needle is here in full — 108 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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.
moving forward
From this reading “Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.”
plural of “cry” — a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition
From this reading “It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.”
past form of “encamp” — live in or as if in a tent
From this reading “Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.”
being or made softer or less loud or clear
From this reading “It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.”
a large indefinite number
From this reading “It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.”
continue talking
From this reading “Whence does that multitude proceed?”
put down or press the foot, place the foot
From this reading “It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.”
an old word meaning “from where”
From this reading “Whence does that multitude proceed?”
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 “Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.”
forced to turn and face attackers
In this reading “AT BAY.”
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 It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
moving forward
From this reading Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
a permanent organization of the military land forces of a nation or state
From this reading Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading AT BAY.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.
an indentation of a shoreline larger than a cove but smaller than a gulf
From this reading AT BAY.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.
plural of “cry” — a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
separated in space or coming from or going to a distance
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Whence does that multitude proceed?
past form of “encamp” — live in or as if in a tent
From this reading Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading What noise is that?
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
being or made softer or less loud or clear
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
a large indefinite number
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading What noise is that?
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
continue talking
From this reading Whence does that multitude proceed?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.
plural of “sound” — the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading What noise is that?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
in the direction of
From this reading Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.
put down or press the foot, place the foot
From this reading It sounds like the distant and muffled tread and cries of a large multitude.
a community of people smaller than a town
From this reading Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What noise is that?
an old word meaning “from where”
From this reading Whence does that multitude proceed?
in or at the place that
From this reading Aye, large indeed is the multitude that is advancing towards the village of Ryonne, where the army of Clotaire II is encamped.
Chapter 12 of The Branding Needle by Eugène Sue holds 108 sentences, grouped into 22 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 108 sentences of The Branding Needle, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of The Branding Needle by Eugène Sue exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 108 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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 Branding Needle by Eugène Sue on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1897 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #33618 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #33618, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 158 minutes of reading across 380 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Branding Needle section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of The Branding Needle 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 Branding Needle, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
