Chapter 4 of The Comic Poems of Thomas Hood is here in full — 314 sentences across 63 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Comic Poems of Thomas Hood is here in full — 314 sentences across 63 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
They’ll stop our growth, they’ll starve us both! THE SWEEP’S COMPLAINT. “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA. ----“A voice cried Sweep no more! Macbeth hath murdered sweep.”--SHAKSPEARE.
Chapter 4 of The Comic Poems of Thomas Hood is here in full — 314 sentences across 63 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/62 · 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.
an often persistent bodily disorder or disease; a cause for complaining
From this reading “THE SWEEP’S COMPLAINT.”
English essayist (1775-1834)
From this reading ““I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.”
plural of “essay” — an analytic or interpretive literary composition
From this reading ““I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.”
king of Scotland (died in 1057)
From this reading “Macbeth hath murdered sweep.”--SHAKSPEARE.”
look furtively
appearing to be as specified; usually used as combining forms
From this reading ““I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.”
any of several small dull-colored singing birds feeding on seeds or insects
From this reading ““I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.”
be hungry; go without food
From this reading “They’ll stop our growth, they’ll starve us both!”
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.
come out of
In this reading ““I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.”
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 “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
the two together, not just one
From this reading They’ll stop our growth, they’ll starve us both!
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
an often persistent bodily disorder or disease; a cause for complaining
From this reading THE SWEEP’S COMPLAINT.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading ----“A voice cried Sweep no more!
the first light of day
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
earlier in time; previously
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
English essayist (1775-1834)
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
plural of “essay” — an analytic or interpretive literary composition
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
(biology) the process of an individual organism growing organically; a purely biological unfolding of events involved in an organism changing gradually from a simple to a more complex level
From this reading They’ll stop our growth, they’ll starve us both!
an old form of “has”
From this reading Macbeth hath murdered sweep.”--SHAKSPEARE.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
king of Scotland (died in 1057)
From this reading Macbeth hath murdered sweep.”--SHAKSPEARE.
come together
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading ----“A voice cried Sweep no more!
killed unlawfully
From this reading Macbeth hath murdered sweep.”--SHAKSPEARE.
not any; not one
From this reading ----“A voice cried Sweep no more!
plural of “note” — a brief written record
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading They’ll stop our growth, they’ll starve us both!
look furtively
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
engaged in a profession or engaging in as a profession or means of livelihood
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Macbeth hath murdered sweep.”--SHAKSPEARE.
to a small degree or extent
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
appearing to be as specified; usually used as combining forms
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
any of several small dull-colored singing birds feeding on seeds or insects
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
be hungry; go without food
From this reading They’ll stop our growth, they’ll starve us both!
come to a halt, stop moving
From this reading They’ll stop our growth, they’ll starve us both!
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
sweep across or over
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE SWEEP’S COMPLAINT.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE SWEEP’S COMPLAINT.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They’ll stop our growth, they’ll starve us both!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading They’ll stop our growth, they’ll starve us both!
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading ----“A voice cried Sweep no more!
in the company of; together with
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading “I like to meet a sweep--such as come forth with the dawn, or somewhat earlier, with their little professional notes, sounding like the _peep, peep_ of a young sparrow.”--ESSAYS OF ELIA.
Chapter 4 of The Comic Poems of Thomas Hood by Thomas Hood holds 314 sentences, grouped into 63 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 4 holds 314 sentences of The Comic Poems of Thomas Hood, unabridged, divided into 63 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Comic Poems of Thomas Hood by Thomas Hood exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 314 sentences, grouped into 63 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 63 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 63 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 4 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 Comic Poems of Thomas Hood by Thomas Hood on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5327 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56712 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56712, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 443 minutes of reading across 1066 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Comic Poems of Thomas Hood section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 18 chapters of The Comic Poems of Thomas Hood 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 Comic Poems of Thomas Hood, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
