Chapter 23 of The Complete Poetical Works of Henry is here in full — 542 sentences across 109 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of The Complete Poetical Works of Henry is here in full — 542 sentences across 109 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right! Ah, now this is my great delight! For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight. Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains. Reads.
Chapter 23 of The Complete Poetical Works of Henry is here in full — 542 sentences across 109 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/108 · 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.
argue with one another
From this reading “The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!”
plural of “discussion” — an extended communication (often interactive) dealing with some particular topic
From this reading “For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.”
third-person singular of “maintain” — cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading “Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.”
a recklessly extravagant consumer
From this reading “Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.”
of or relating to schools
From this reading “The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!”
consisting of a haphazard assortment of different kinds
From this reading “The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!”
a witty amusing person who makes jokes
From this reading “Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.”
a human being; “wight” is an archaic term
From this reading “The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!”
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 The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ah, now this is my great delight!
plural of “brain” — that part of the central nervous system that includes all the higher nervous centers; enclosed within the skull; continuous with the spinal cord
From this reading Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.
take exception to
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
argue with one another
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading Ah, now this is my great delight!
plural of “discussion” — an extended communication (often interactive) dealing with some particular topic
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading Ah, now this is my great delight!
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Ah, now this is my great delight!
being or occurring at an advanced period of time or after a usual or expected time
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
having or showing profound knowledge
From this reading Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.
third-person singular of “maintain” — cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Ah, now this is my great delight!
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Ah, now this is my great delight!
discovered or determined by scientific observation
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
many times at short intervals
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
a recklessly extravagant consumer
From this reading Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.
people in general considered as a whole
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
plural of “question” — an instance of questioning
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
plural of “read” — something that is read
From this reading Reads.
precisely, exactly
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
of or relating to schools
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
consisting of a haphazard assortment of different kinds
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading For I have often observed of late That such discussions end in a fight.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Ah, now this is my great delight!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.
a witty amusing person who makes jokes
From this reading Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.
any materials unused and rejected as worthless or unwanted
From this reading Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.
which person or people
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
a human being; “wight” is an archaic term
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
plural of “wish” — a specific feeling of desire
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
in the company of; together with
From this reading Let us see what the learned wag maintains With such a prodigal waste of brains.
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth
From this reading The challenge of some scholastic wight, Who wishes to hold a public debate On sundry questions wrong or right!
Chapter 23 of The Complete Poetical Works of Henry by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow holds 542 sentences, grouped into 109 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 23 holds 542 sentences of The Complete Poetical Works of Henry, unabridged, divided into 109 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of The Complete Poetical Works of Henry by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 542 sentences, grouped into 109 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 109 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 109 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 23 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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About 600 minutes of reading across 3142 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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