Chapter 38 of The Cottage of Delight: A Novel is here in full — 105 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXVIII
Chapter 38 of The Cottage of Delight: A Novel is here in full — 105 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
John rose to go. Promising to return the next day, he started back to town. By choice he went through a strip of forest-land. In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense. Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
Chapter 38 of The Cottage of Delight: A Novel is here in full — 105 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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.
permitting little if any light to pass through because of denseness of matter
From this reading “In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.”
(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 “In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.”
tiny leafy-stemmed flowerless plants
From this reading “Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.”
showing possibility of achievement or excellence
From this reading “Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.”
plural of “stream” — a natural body of running water flowing on or under the earth
From this reading “Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.”
take away possessions from someone
From this reading “By choice he went through a strip of forest-land.”
past form of “trickle” — run or flow slowly, as in drops or in an unsteady stream
From this reading “Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.”
plural of “vine” — a plant with a weak stem that derives support from climbing, twining, or creeping along a surface
From this reading “In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.”
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 “Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.”
In this reading “Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.”
In this reading “Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.”
In this reading “By choice he went through a strip of forest-land.”
In this reading “Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.”
undergo or live through a difficult experience
In this reading “By choice he went through a strip of forest-land.”
In this reading “Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.”
In this reading “In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.”
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 By choice he went through a strip of forest-land.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.
plural of “bed” — a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
plural of “bush” — a low woody perennial plant usually having several major stems
From this reading In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading By choice he went through a strip of forest-land.
the person or thing chosen or selected
From this reading By choice he went through a strip of forest-land.
rid of obstructions
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
neither warm nor very cold; giving relief from heat
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.
permitting little if any light to pass through because of denseness of matter
From this reading In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading By choice he went through a strip of forest-land.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading John rose to go.
shoot down, of birds
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
(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 In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading John rose to go.
tiny leafy-stemmed flowerless plants
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading By choice he went through a strip of forest-land.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
above and across; more than
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
plural of “place” — a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.
showing possibility of achievement or excellence
From this reading Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.
go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before
From this reading Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading John rose to go.
relative darkness caused by light rays being intercepted by an opaque body
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.
past form of “start” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.
plural of “stream” — a natural body of running water flowing on or under the earth
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
take away possessions from someone
From this reading By choice he went through a strip of forest-land.
the rays of the sun
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading By choice he went through a strip of forest-land.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading John rose to go.
an urban area with a fixed boundary that is smaller than a city
From this reading Promising to return the next day, he started back to town.
plural of “tree” — a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.
past form of “trickle” — run or flow slowly, as in drops or in an unsteady stream
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
plural of “vine” — a plant with a weak stem that derives support from climbing, twining, or creeping along a surface
From this reading In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.
having or producing a comfortable and agreeable degree of heat or imparting or maintaining heat
From this reading Small streams trickled through the moss and grass over pebbled beds, clear and cool in the shade and warm in the open sunshine.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading In some places the growth of trees, bushes, and vines was dense.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading By choice he went through a strip of forest-land.
Chapter 38 of The Cottage of Delight: A Novel by Will N. (Will Nathaniel) Harben holds 105 sentences, grouped into 21 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 38 holds 105 sentences of The Cottage of Delight: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 21 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 38 of The Cottage of Delight: A Novel by Will N. (Will Nathaniel) Harben exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 105 sentences, grouped into 21 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 21 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 21 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 38 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 Cottage of Delight: A Novel by Will N. (Will Nathaniel) Harben on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9004 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #33715 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #33715, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1801 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Cottage of Delight: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Cottage of Delight: A Novel 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 Cottage of Delight: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
