Chapter 3 of The Cat and Fiddle Book is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Cat and Fiddle Book is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
BAILIFF. I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship. COUNTESS. Do you hear that, Gander? There stands an old man---- BAILIFF.
Chapter 3 of The Cat and Fiddle Book is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
defend, explain, clear away, or make excuses for by reasoning
From this reading “I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.”
an officer of the court who is employed to execute writs and processes and make arrests etc.
From this reading “BAILIFF.”
female equivalent of a count or earl
From this reading “COUNTESS.”
mature male goose
From this reading “I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.”
plural of “knee” — hinge joint in the human leg connecting the tibia and fibula with the femur and protected in front by the patella
From this reading “I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.”
a woman of refinement
From this reading “I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.”
plural of “stand” — a support or foundation
From this reading “There stands an old man---- BAILIFF.”
disposed or inclined toward
From this reading “I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.”
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.
continue a certain state, condition, or activity
In this reading “I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.”
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.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading There stands an old man---- BAILIFF.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
defend, explain, clear away, or make excuses for by reasoning
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
an officer of the court who is employed to execute writs and processes and make arrests etc.
From this reading BAILIFF.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
female equivalent of a count or earl
From this reading COUNTESS.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading Do you hear that, Gander?
divisible by two
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
mature male goose
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading Do you hear that, Gander?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
plural of “knee” — hinge joint in the human leg connecting the tibia and fibula with the femur and protected in front by the patella
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
a title used to address any peeress except a duchess
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
a woman of refinement
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading There stands an old man---- BAILIFF.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading There stands an old man---- BAILIFF.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
plural of “stand” — a support or foundation
From this reading There stands an old man---- BAILIFF.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Do you hear that, Gander?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There stands an old man---- BAILIFF.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
disposed or inclined toward
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I am willing to apologise to you, madam, but not to the Gander, and I will not go on my knees, even to your ladyship.
Chapter 3 of The Cat and Fiddle Book by Florence Eveleen Eleanore Olliffe, Lady Bell holds 405 sentences, grouped into 81 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 3 holds 405 sentences of The Cat and Fiddle Book, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Cat and Fiddle Book by Florence Eveleen Eleanore Olliffe, Lady Bell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 405 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 3 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 Cat and Fiddle Book by Florence Eveleen Eleanore Olliffe, Lady Bell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1649 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34763 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34763, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 137 minutes of reading across 330 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Cat and Fiddle Book section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of The Cat and Fiddle Book 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 Cat and Fiddle Book, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
