The City of Masks

Chapter XII

Chapter 12 of The City of Masks is here in full — 393 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By George Barr McCutcheon • Curated US English Learning Edition

Cover illustration for The City of Masks

English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.

The butler had informed her on her return to the house shortly after five that Mrs. Smith-Parvis would see her at seven in the library, after all, instead of in her boudoir, and she was to look sharp about being prompt.

The young lady smiled.

"It's all one to me, Rogers,--the library or the boudoir."

Narrator

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LEARNER DICTIONARY

Archivist

/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

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A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter XII Reading 1/78

The City of Masks

Chapter XII

Chapter 12 of The City of Masks is here in full — 393 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/78 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

Line 2

She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.

/ʃiː ˈdredɪd ðə ˈɪntərvjuː ðæt wɑːz set fɔːr ˈsevən əˈklɑːk ðæt ˈiːvnɪŋ/

Line 3

Line 4

The young lady smiled.

/ðə jʌŋ ˈleɪdi smaɪld/

Line 5

"It's all one to me, Rogers,--the library or the boudoir."

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.

boudoir noun US /ˈbuːdɔɪr/

a lady's bedroom or private sitting room

From this reading “The butler had informed her on her return to the house shortly after five that Mrs. Smith-Parvis would see her at seven in the library, after all, instead of in her boudoir, and she was to look sharp about being prompt.”

butler noun US /ˈbʌtlər/

a manservant (usually the head servant of a household) who has charge of wines and the table

dreaded adjective US /ˈdredɪd/

causing fear or dread or terror

From this reading “She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.”

fog noun US /fɑːɡ/

droplets of water vapor suspended in the air near the ground

From this reading “IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."”

interview verb US /ˈɪntərvjuː/

conduct an interview in television, newspaper, and radio reporting

From this reading “She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.”

prompt verb US /prɑːmpt/

give an incentive for action

reference noun US /ˈrefərəns/

a remark that calls attention to something or someone

From this reading “IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."”

Rogers noun US /ˈrɑːdʒərz/

United States humorist remembered for his homespun commentary on politics and American society (1879-1935)

From this reading “"It's all one to me, Rogers,--the library or the boudoir."”

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.

young lady adjective + noun

a young female

In this reading “The young lady smiled.”

look sharp verb + adjective

act or move at high speed

In this reading “The butler had informed her on her return to the house shortly after five that Mrs. Smith-Parvis would see her at seven in the library, after all, instead of in her boudoir, and she was to look sharp about being prompt.”

in the library preposition + article + noun counted as “in … library”

at seven preposition + noun

IN THE FOG preposition + article + noun counted as “in … fog”

In this reading “IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."”

for seven preposition + noun

In this reading “She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.”

All words in this reading · 55

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 IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/

on the subject of; concerning

From this reading The butler had informed her on her return to the house shortly after five that Mrs. Smith-Parvis would see her at seven in the library, after all, instead of in her boudoir, and she was to look sharp about being prompt.

afterprepositionUS /ˈæftər/

later than; following

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

askverbUS /æsk/

make a request or demand for something to somebody

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

beingauxiliary verbUS /ˈbiːɪŋ/

the -ing form of “be”

boudoirnounUS /ˈbuːdɔɪr/

a lady's bedroom or private sitting room

butlernounUS /ˈbʌtlər/

a manservant (usually the head servant of a household) who has charge of wines and the table

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

dreadedadjectiveUS /ˈdredɪd/

causing fear or dread or terror

From this reading She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.

EMSDALE

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

eveningnounUS /ˈiːvnɪŋ/

the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)

From this reading She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.

fivenounUS /faɪv/

the cardinal number that is the sum of four and one

FOGnounUS /fɑːɡ/

droplets of water vapor suspended in the air near the ground

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

housenounUS /haʊs/

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

INprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

informedadjectiveUS /ˌɪnˈfɔːrmd/

having much knowledge or education

insteadadverbUS /ˌɪnˈsted/

in place of, or as an alternative to

interviewverbUS /ˈɪntərvjuː/

conduct an interview in television, newspaper, and radio reporting

From this reading She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.

It's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading "It's all one to me, Rogers,--the library or the boudoir."

ladynounUS /ˈleɪdi/

a polite name for any woman

From this reading The young lady smiled.

librarynounUS /ˈlaɪbreriː/

a room where books are kept

lookverbUS /lʊk/

perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards

mepronounUS /miː/

the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading "It's all one to me, Rogers,--the library or the boudoir."

MISSverbUS /mɪs/

fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

MrsnounUS /ˈmɪsɪz/

a form of address for a married woman

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

o'clockadverbUS /əˈklɑːk/

according to the clock

From this reading She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading "It's all one to me, Rogers,--the library or the boudoir."

orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/

used to join alternatives or possibilities

From this reading "It's all one to me, Rogers,--the library or the boudoir."

promptverbUS /prɑːmpt/

give an incentive for action

referencenounUS /ˈrefərəns/

a remark that calls attention to something or someone

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

returnverbUS /rɪˈtɜːrn/

go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before

RogersnounUS /ˈrɑːdʒərz/

United States humorist remembered for his homespun commentary on politics and American society (1879-1935)

From this reading "It's all one to me, Rogers,--the library or the boudoir."

seeverbUS /siː/

perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight

setverbUS /set/

put into a certain place or abstract location

From this reading She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.

sevennounUS /ˈsevən/

the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one

From this reading She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.

sharpadjectiveUS /ʃɑːrp/

(of something seen or heard) clearly defined

ShepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.

shortlyadverbUS /ˈʃɔːrtli/

for a short time

smiledverbUS /smaɪld/

past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure

From this reading The young lady smiled.

Smith-Parvis

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading IN THE FOG MISS EMSDALE did not ask Mrs. Smith-Parvis for a "reference."

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading She dreaded the interview that was set for seven o'clock that evening.

wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

youngadjectiveUS /jʌŋ/

(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth

From this reading The young lady smiled.

Chapter 12 of The City of Masks by George Barr McCutcheon holds 393 sentences, grouped into 79 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 12 of The City of Masks contain?

Chapter 12 holds 393 sentences of The City of Masks, unabridged, divided into 79 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 12 of The City of Masks by George Barr McCutcheon exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 393 sentences, grouped into 79 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 12 of The City of Masks?

Work through the 79 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 79 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 12 be read aloud to me?

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.

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Is this the complete text of The City of Masks?

Yes. All 6027 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #40146 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #40146, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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About 502 minutes of reading across 1206 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Chapter XII

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