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The Casque's Lark
The Casque's Lark

Chapter VIII

Chapter 8 of The Casque's Lark is here in full — 85 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for The Casque's Lark
Context Illustration Reading 1/17 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
SHADOWS ACROSS THE PATH.
The night was far advanced.
I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.
He seemed to be peeping through the shutters.
I gave a start.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

The Casque's Lark

Chapter VIII

Chapter 8 of The Casque's Lark is here in full — 85 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/17 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
SHADOWS ACROSS THE PATH.
/ˈʃædoʊz əˈkrɔːs ðə pæθ/
Line 2
The night was far advanced.
/ðə naɪt wɑːz fɑːr ədˈvænst/
Line 3
I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.
/aɪ hæd riːtʃt wɪˈðɪn ə fjuː steps frʌm maɪ haʊs wen aɪ sɔː θruː ðə dɑːrk ə mæn ˈkraʊtʃɪŋ ɑːn ðə sɪl ʌv wʌn ʌv ðə ˈwɪndoʊz/
Line 4
He seemed to be peeping through the shutters.
/hiː siːmd tuː biː ˈpiːpɪŋ θruː ðə ˈʃʌtərz/
Line 5
I gave a start.
/aɪ ɡeɪv ə stɑːrt/

Learner Dictionary

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.

advanced adjective US /ədˈvænst/

farther along in physical or mental development

From this reading “The night was far advanced.”

crouching verb US /ˈkraʊtʃɪŋ/

-ing form of “crouch” — bend one's back forward from the waist on down

From this reading “I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.”

path noun US /pæθ/

a course of conduct

From this reading “SHADOWS ACROSS THE PATH.”

peeping verb US /ˈpiːpɪŋ/

-ing form of “peep” — look furtively

From this reading “He seemed to be peeping through the shutters.”

shadows noun US /ˈʃædoʊz/

plural of “shadow” — shade within clear boundaries

From this reading “SHADOWS ACROSS THE PATH.”

shutters noun US /ˈʃʌtərz/

plural of “shutter” — a mechanical device on a camera that opens and closes to control the time of a photographic exposure

From this reading “He seemed to be peeping through the shutters.”

sill noun US /sɪl/

structural member consisting of a continuous horizontal timber forming the lowest member of a framework or supporting structure

From this reading “I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.”

windows noun US /ˈwɪndoʊz/

(trademark) an operating system with a graphical user interface

From this reading “I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.”

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

few steps adjective + noun

In this reading “I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.”

peeping through verb + particle counted as “peep through”

In this reading “He seemed to be peeping through the shutters.”

far advanced adverb + adjective

In this reading “The night was far advanced.”

on the sill preposition + article + noun counted as “on … sill”

In this reading “I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.”

ACROSS THE PATH preposition + article + noun counted as “across … path”

In this reading “SHADOWS ACROSS THE PATH.”

through the dark preposition + article + noun counted as “through … dark”

In this reading “I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.”

crouching on verb + particle counted as “crouch on”

In this reading “I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.”

All words in this reading · 37

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

ACROSSprepositionUS /əˈkrɔːs/

from one side of something to the other

From this reading SHADOWS ACROSS THE PATH.

advancedadjectiveUS /ədˈvænst/

farther along in physical or mental development

From this reading The night was far advanced.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

From this reading He seemed to be peeping through the shutters.

crouchingverbUS /ˈkraʊtʃɪŋ/

-ing form of “crouch” — bend one's back forward from the waist on down

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

darknounUS /dɑːrk/

absence of light or illumination

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

faradverbUS /fɑːr/

to a considerable degree; very much

From this reading The night was far advanced.

fewadjectiveUS /fjuː/

a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

gaveverbUS /ɡeɪv/

inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense

From this reading I gave a start.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

HepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading He seemed to be peeping through the shutters.

housenounUS /haʊs/

a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

mannounUS /mæn/

an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

nightnounUS /naɪt/

the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside

From this reading The night was far advanced.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

PATHnounUS /pæθ/

a course of conduct

From this reading SHADOWS ACROSS THE PATH.

peepingverbUS /ˈpiːpɪŋ/

-ing form of “peep” — look furtively

From this reading He seemed to be peeping through the shutters.

reachedverbUS /riːtʃt/

past form of “reach” — reach a destination, either real or abstract

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

sawverbUS /sɔː/

cut with a saw

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

seemedverbUS /siːmd/

past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect

From this reading He seemed to be peeping through the shutters.

SHADOWSnounUS /ˈʃædoʊz/

plural of “shadow” — shade within clear boundaries

From this reading SHADOWS ACROSS THE PATH.

shuttersnounUS /ˈʃʌtərz/

plural of “shutter” — a mechanical device on a camera that opens and closes to control the time of a photographic exposure

From this reading He seemed to be peeping through the shutters.

sillnounUS /sɪl/

structural member consisting of a continuous horizontal timber forming the lowest member of a framework or supporting structure

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

startverbUS /stɑːrt/

take the first step or steps in carrying out an action

From this reading I gave a start.

stepsnounUS /steps/

a flight of stairs or a flight of steps

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading SHADOWS ACROSS THE PATH.

throughprepositionUS /θruː/

from one end or side of something to the other

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading He seemed to be peeping through the shutters.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading The night was far advanced.

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

windowsnounUS /ˈwɪndoʊz/

(trademark) an operating system with a graphical user interface

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

withinprepositionUS /wɪˈðɪn/

inside; before a period of time has passed

From this reading I had reached within a few steps from my house when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one of the windows.

Chapter 8 of The Casque's Lark by Eugène Sue holds 85 sentences, grouped into 17 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.

What does chapter 8 of The Casque's Lark contain?

Chapter 8 holds 85 sentences of The Casque's Lark, unabridged, divided into 17 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 8 of The Casque's Lark by Eugène Sue exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 85 sentences, grouped into 17 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.

How do I study chapter 8 of The Casque's Lark?

Work through the 17 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 17 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.

Can chapter 8 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 8 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.

Questions about reading The Casque's Lark

Common questions about reading The Casque's Lark by Eugène Sue on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of The Casque's Lark?

Yes. All 4510 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #33868 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of The Casque's Lark is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #33868, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does The Casque's Lark take to read?

About 375 minutes of reading across 902 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read The Casque's Lark section by section

How to work through The Casque's Lark section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 24 chapters of The Casque's Lark to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in The Casque's Lark

Words and structures a reader meets early in The Casque's Lark, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

History
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Casque's Lark; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Proletarian
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Casque's Lark; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Family
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Casque's Lark; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Across
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Casque's Lark; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.