Chapter 8 of The Cook's Wedding and Other Stories is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Cook's Wedding and Other Stories is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole. How light-hearted I am now, with joy in my soul! I have no sins now, I am holy, I have the right to enter Paradise! I fancy that I already smell like the cassock. I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.
Chapter 8 of The Cook's Wedding and Other Stories is here in full — 403 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.
third-person singular of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “"What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.”
a black garment reaching down to the ankles; worn by priests or choristers
From this reading “I fancy that I already smell like the cassock.”
a natural object that covers or envelops
From this reading “"What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.”
a Protestant layman who assists the minister
From this reading “I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.”
a white or silvered surface where pictures can be projected for viewing
From this reading “I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.”
plural of “sin” — estrangement from god
From this reading “I have no sins now, I am holy, I have the right to enter Paradise!”
plural of “sleeve” — the part of a garment that is attached at the armhole and that provides a cloth covering for the arm
From this reading “I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.”
perceive by inhaling through the nose
From this reading “I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.”
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.
prior to a specified or implied time
From this reading I fancy that I already smell like the cassock.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading How light-hearted I am now, with joy in my soul!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.
third-person singular of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.
at or toward the back of something
From this reading I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.
a black garment reaching down to the ankles; worn by priests or choristers
From this reading I fancy that I already smell like the cassock.
a natural object that covers or envelops
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
a Protestant layman who assists the minister
From this reading I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.
to come or go into
From this reading I have no sins now, I am holy, I have the right to enter Paradise!
something many people believe that is false
From this reading I fancy that I already smell like the cassock.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I have no sins now, I am holy, I have the right to enter Paradise!
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
a sacred place of pilgrimage
From this reading I have no sins now, I am holy, I have the right to enter Paradise!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading How light-hearted I am now, with joy in my soul!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading How light-hearted I am now, with joy in my soul!
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading How light-hearted I am now, with joy in my soul!
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
the emotion of great happiness
From this reading How light-hearted I am now, with joy in my soul!
carefree and happy and lighthearted
From this reading How light-hearted I am now, with joy in my soul!
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading I fancy that I already smell like the cassock.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
not any; not one
From this reading I have no sins now, I am holy, I have the right to enter Paradise!
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading How light-hearted I am now, with joy in my soul!
any place of complete bliss and delight and peace
From this reading I have no sins now, I am holy, I have the right to enter Paradise!
a clergyman in Christian churches who has the authority to perform or administer various religious rites; one of the Holy Orders
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
precisely, exactly
From this reading I have no sins now, I am holy, I have the right to enter Paradise!
a white or silvered surface where pictures can be projected for viewing
From this reading I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.
plural of “sin” — estrangement from god
From this reading I have no sins now, I am holy, I have the right to enter Paradise!
plural of “sleeve” — the part of a garment that is attached at the armhole and that provides a cloth covering for the arm
From this reading I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.
the sensation that results when olfactory receptors in the nose are stimulated by particular chemicals in gaseous form
From this reading I fancy that I already smell like the cassock.
perceive by inhaling through the nose
From this reading I go from behind the screen to the deacon to enter my name, and sniff at my sleeves.
yielding readily to pressure or weight
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
the immaterial part of a person; the actuating cause of an individual life
From this reading How light-hearted I am now, with joy in my soul!
a wide scarf worn about their shoulders by women
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading I fancy that I already smell like the cassock.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I have no sins now, I am holy, I have the right to enter Paradise!
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "What is your name?" the priest asks me, covering my head with the soft stole.
Chapter 8 of The Cook's Wedding and Other Stories by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov holds 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 8 holds 403 sentences of The Cook's Wedding and Other Stories, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Cook's Wedding and Other Stories by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 403 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 8 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 Cook's Wedding and Other Stories by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5265 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #13417 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #13417, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 438 minutes of reading across 1053 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Cook's Wedding and Other Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of The Cook's Wedding and Other Stories 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 Cook's Wedding and Other Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
