Chapter 4 of The Broom-Squire is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Broom-Squire is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MEHETABEL. Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms. He was perplexed. What should be done with it? He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
Chapter 4 of The Broom-Squire is here in full — 160 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/32 · 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.
weapons considered collectively
From this reading “Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.”
a young person of either sex
From this reading “Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.”
having ones attention or mind or energy engaged
From this reading “He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.”
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading “He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.”
comparative of “iv” — being one more than three
From this reading “Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.”
full of difficulty or confusion or bewilderment
From this reading “He was perplexed.”
move over something with pressure
From this reading “He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.”
inflected form of “rub” — move over something with pressure
From this reading “He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.”
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.
where the air is unconfined
In this reading “Iver stood in the open air with the child in his 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.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
weapons considered collectively
From this reading Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading What should be done with it?
the past participle of “be”
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
the two together, not just one
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
a young person of either sex
From this reading Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading What should be done with it?
having ones attention or mind or energy engaged
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was perplexed.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading What should be done with it?
comparative of “iv” — being one more than three
From this reading Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading MEHETABEL.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.
full of difficulty or confusion or bewilderment
From this reading He was perplexed.
move over something with pressure
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
inflected form of “rub” — move over something with pressure
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading What should be done with it?
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He was perplexed.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What should be done with it?
in the company of; together with
From this reading Iver stood in the open air with the child in his arms.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading He would have rubbed his head, to rub an idea into it, had not both his arms been engaged.
Chapter 4 of The Broom-Squire by S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould holds 160 sentences, grouped into 32 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 160 sentences of The Broom-Squire, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Broom-Squire by S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 160 sentences, grouped into 32 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 32 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 32 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 Broom-Squire by S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7532 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30354 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30354, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1507 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Broom-Squire section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Broom-Squire 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 Broom-Squire, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
