Chapter 1 of The corsair is here in full — 216 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The corsair is here in full — 216 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE BEAUTY OF INNOCENCE. Date of the action: Midsummer, 1627. Author Unknown, and now First Edited. _With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE. As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
Chapter 1 of The corsair is here in full — 216 sentences across 44 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/43 · 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.
(comparative and superlative of “early”) more early than; most early
From this reading “_With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.”
improved or corrected by critical editing
From this reading “Author Unknown, and now First Edited.”
of or relating to the study of history
From this reading “_With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.”
relatively long in duration; tediously protracted
From this reading “As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.”
June 21, when the sun is at its northernmost point
From this reading “Date of the action: Midsummer, 1627.”
uneasiness about the fitness of an action
From this reading “As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.”
a short introductory essay preceding the text of a book
From this reading “_With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.”
a narrow channel of the sea joining two larger bodies of water
From this reading “_With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.”
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.
In this reading “_With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.”
In this reading “As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Date of the action: Midsummer, 1627.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading _With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.
something done (usually as opposed to something said)
From this reading Date of the action: Midsummer, 1627.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Author Unknown, and now First Edited.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading Author Unknown, and now First Edited.
the qualities that give pleasure to the senses
From this reading THE BEAUTY OF INNOCENCE.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
the specified day of the month
From this reading Date of the action: Midsummer, 1627.
(comparative and superlative of “early”) more early than; most early
From this reading _With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.
improved or corrected by critical editing
From this reading Author Unknown, and now First Edited.
undergo an emotional sensation or be in a particular state of mind
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading Author Unknown, and now First Edited.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading _With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
of or relating to the study of history
From this reading _With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
the quality of innocent naivete
From this reading THE BEAUTY OF INNOCENCE.
past form of “invite” — increase the likelihood of
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
relatively long in duration; tediously protracted
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
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 As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
June 21, when the sun is at its northernmost point
From this reading Date of the action: Midsummer, 1627.
uneasiness about the fitness of an action
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Author Unknown, and now First Edited.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE BEAUTY OF INNOCENCE.
a composition written in metrical feet forming rhythmical lines
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
a short introductory essay preceding the text of a book
From this reading _With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.
a person who enjoys reading
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
the context and environment in which something is set
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
preliminary drawing for later elaboration
From this reading _With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
a narrow channel of the sea joining two larger bodies of water
From this reading _With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE BEAUTY OF INNOCENCE.
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading _With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
not known
From this reading Author Unknown, and now First Edited.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading As we have invited the reader to a long Poem, we feel some misgiving in setting before him a lengthy Preface.
in the company of; together with
From this reading _With a Historical Sketch of the Strait from the Earliest Times._ PREFACE.
Chapter 1 of The corsair by William Barney Allen holds 216 sentences, grouped into 44 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 1 holds 216 sentences of The corsair, unabridged, divided into 44 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The corsair by William Barney Allen exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 216 sentences, grouped into 44 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 44 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 44 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 1 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 corsair by William Barney Allen on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 216 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #66466 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #66466, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 18 minutes of reading across 44 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The corsair section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of The corsair 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 corsair, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
