Chapter 1 of The Courage of the Commonplace is here in full — 569 sentences across 114 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Courage of the Commonplace is here in full — 569 sentences across 114 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand. The girl. Herself. Crying. In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
Chapter 1 of The Courage of the Commonplace is here in full — 569 sentences across 114 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 100/113 · 5 reading units · Lines 496–500
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.
demanding attention
From this reading “Crying.”
gleam or glow intermittently
From this reading “In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.”
a disorderly crowd of people
From this reading “As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.”
so strong as to be irresistible
From this reading “In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.”
experiencing or manifesting pleasure
From this reading “As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.”
plural of “street” — a thoroughfare (usually including sidewalks) that is lined with buildings
From this reading “As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.”
a beverage made by steeping tea leaves in water
From this reading “As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.”
a university in Connecticut
From this reading “As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.”
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 In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
the part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
demanding attention
From this reading Crying.
gleam or glow intermittently
From this reading In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
set up or found
From this reading In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
containing as much or as many as is possible or normal
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
a young female
From this reading The girl.
state of well-being characterized by emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy
From this reading In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading Herself.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
the force of workers available
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
a disorderly crowd of people
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
not any; not one
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
so strong as to be irresistible
From this reading In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
experiencing or manifesting pleasure
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
plural of “street” — a thoroughfare (usually including sidewalks) that is lined with buildings
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
a beverage made by steeping tea leaves in water
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds)
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
in or at that place or location
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading In a flash, by the light of the happiness that was overwhelming, he found this other happiness.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
which person or people
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
a university in Connecticut
From this reading As if there were no afternoon tea, no mob of Yale men in the streets, no world full of people who might, if they pleased, see those tears and understand.
Chapter 1 of The Courage of the Commonplace by Mary Raymond Shipman Andrews holds 569 sentences, grouped into 114 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 569 sentences of The Courage of the Commonplace, unabridged, divided into 114 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Courage of the Commonplace by Mary Raymond Shipman Andrews exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 569 sentences, grouped into 114 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 114 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 114 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 Courage of the Commonplace by Mary Raymond Shipman Andrews on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 569 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #5825 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #5825, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 47 minutes of reading across 114 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Courage of the Commonplace section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of The Courage of the Commonplace 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 Courage of the Commonplace, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
