Chapter 5 of The Comedy of Errors is here in full — 181 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of The Comedy of Errors is here in full — 181 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Offi. Good now hold thy tongue E.Dro. Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti. Thou whoreson senselesse Villaine E.Dro. I would I were senselesse sir, that I might not feele your blowes Anti.
Chapter 5 of The Comedy of Errors is here in full — 181 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/36 · 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.
not in favor of (an action or proposal etc.)
From this reading “Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.”
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading “Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.”
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading “Good now hold thy tongue E.Dro.”
an old word for “no”
From this reading “Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.”
on the contrary
From this reading “Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.”
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading “Thou whoreson senselesse Villaine E.Dro.”
an old word for “your”, speaking to one person
From this reading “Good now hold thy tongue E.Dro.”
a mobile mass of muscular tissue covered with mucous membrane and located in the oral cavity
From this reading “Good now hold thy tongue E.Dro.”
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.
not in favor of (an action or proposal etc.)
From this reading Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I would I were senselesse sir, that I might not feele your blowes Anti.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Good now hold thy tongue E.Dro.
a fat-soluble vitamin that is essential for normal reproduction; an important antioxidant that neutralizes free radicals in the body
From this reading Good now hold thy tongue E.Dro.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I would I were senselesse sir, that I might not feele your blowes Anti.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading Good now hold thy tongue E.Dro.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading Good now hold thy tongue E.Dro.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I would I were senselesse sir, that I might not feele your blowes Anti.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading I would I were senselesse sir, that I might not feele your blowes Anti.
an old word for “no”
From this reading Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading I would I were senselesse sir, that I might not feele your blowes Anti.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Good now hold thy tongue E.Dro.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Offi.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.
on the contrary
From this reading Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Thou whoreson senselesse Villaine E.Dro.
term of address for a man
From this reading I would I were senselesse sir, that I might not feele your blowes Anti.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading I would I were senselesse sir, that I might not feele your blowes Anti.
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading Thou whoreson senselesse Villaine E.Dro.
an old word for “your”, speaking to one person
From this reading Good now hold thy tongue E.Dro.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Nay, rather perswade him to hold his hands Anti.
a mobile mass of muscular tissue covered with mucous membrane and located in the oral cavity
From this reading Good now hold thy tongue E.Dro.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Thou whoreson senselesse Villaine E.Dro.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading I would I were senselesse sir, that I might not feele your blowes Anti.
the illegitimate offspring of unmarried parents
From this reading Thou whoreson senselesse Villaine E.Dro.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading I would I were senselesse sir, that I might not feele your blowes Anti.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I would I were senselesse sir, that I might not feele your blowes Anti.
Chapter 5 of The Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare holds 181 sentences, grouped into 37 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 5 holds 181 sentences of The Comedy of Errors, unabridged, divided into 37 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of The Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 181 sentences, grouped into 37 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 37 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 37 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 5 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 Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1102 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1104 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1104, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 91 minutes of reading across 221 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Comedy of Errors section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of The Comedy of Errors 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 Comedy of Errors, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
