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.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
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.
Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly. "You're mine--but you're theirs to-night. I haven't a right to so much of you even. You're theirs. Go."
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 112/113 · 5 reading units · Lines 556–560
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.
weapons considered collectively
From this reading “Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.”
held up in the air
From this reading “Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.”
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “"You're mine--but you're theirs to-night.”
the part of an organism (human or animal) that connects the head to the rest of the body
From this reading “Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.”
precisely, exactly
From this reading “I haven't a right to so much of you even.”
without speed (“slow” is sometimes used informally for “slowly”)
From this reading “Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.”
in a swift manner
From this reading “Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.”
the one or ones belonging to them
From this reading “"You're mine--but you're theirs to-night.”
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 I haven't a right to so much of you even.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.
weapons considered collectively
From this reading Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "You're mine--but you're theirs to-night.
divisible by two
From this reading I haven't a right to so much of you even.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Go."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I haven't a right to so much of you even.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I haven't a right to so much of you even.
held up in the air
From this reading Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "You're mine--but you're theirs to-night.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading I haven't a right to so much of you even.
the part of an organism (human or animal) that connects the head to the rest of the body
From this reading Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I haven't a right to so much of you even.
precisely, exactly
From this reading I haven't a right to so much of you even.
without speed (“slow” is sometimes used informally for “slowly”)
From this reading Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading I haven't a right to so much of you even.
in a swift manner
From this reading Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.
the one or ones belonging to them
From this reading "You're mine--but you're theirs to-night.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I haven't a right to so much of you even.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "You're mine--but you're theirs to-night.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Her arms, lifted slowly, went about his neck swiftly.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I haven't a right to so much of you even.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "You're mine--but you're theirs to-night.
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.
