Chapter 20 of The Clever Woman of the Family is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Clever Woman of the Family is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.” Marmion. “Are you sleepy, Rose? What a yawn!” “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
Chapter 20 of The Clever Woman of the Family is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
A means of altering one's appearance to conceal one's identity.
From this reading ““Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.””
the state of having committed an offense
From this reading ““Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.””
dignified manner or conduct
From this reading ““Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.””
ready to fall asleep
From this reading ““Are you sleepy, Rose?”
past form of “steel” — get ready for something difficult or unpleasant
From this reading ““Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.””
showing fear and lack of confidence
From this reading ““Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.””
so lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness
From this reading ““Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.””
utter a yawn, as from lack of oxygen or when one is tired
From this reading “What a yawn!””
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 What a yawn!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
used to show sadness, pity, or regret
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “Are you sleepy, Rose?
(used of persons or the military) characterized by having or bearing arms
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
the past participle of “be”
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
the part of the face above the eyes
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
made or become different in nature or form
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
a commissioned military officer in the United States Army or Air Force or Marines who ranks above a lieutenant colonel and below a brigadier general
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
A means of altering one's appearance to conceal one's identity.
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
opinion or judgment
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
the state of having committed an offense
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
plural of “look” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Marmion.
dignified manner or conduct
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
and nothing more
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading “Are you sleepy, Rose?
from a time in the past until now
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
ready to fall asleep
From this reading “Are you sleepy, Rose?
past form of “steel” — get ready for something difficult or unpleasant
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
showing fear and lack of confidence
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
so lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What a yawn!”
at the time that
From this reading “Not sleepy, Aunt Ailie; only it is such a tiresome long day when the Colonel does not come in.”
utter a yawn, as from lack of oxygen or when one is tired
From this reading What a yawn!”
a late time of life
From this reading “Alas, he thought, how changed that mien, How changed those timid looks have been, Since years of guilt and of disguise Have steeled her brow and armed her eyes.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Are you sleepy, Rose?
Chapter 20 of The Clever Woman of the Family by Charlotte M. (Charlotte Mary) Yonge holds 401 sentences, grouped into 81 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 20 holds 401 sentences of The Clever Woman of the Family, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Clever Woman of the Family by Charlotte M. (Charlotte Mary) Yonge exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 401 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 20 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 Clever Woman of the Family by Charlotte M. (Charlotte Mary) Yonge on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8029 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3292 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3292, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1606 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Clever Woman of the Family section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 30 chapters of The Clever Woman of the Family 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 Clever Woman of the Family, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
