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.
"I talk little about personal affairs. But I'm not uninterested; I watch. I was anxious about you. You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry. Your first three years at Yale were not satisfactory.
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 37/113 · 5 reading units · Lines 181–185
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.
matters of personal concern
From this reading “"I talk little about personal affairs.”
annoy continually or chronically
From this reading “You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.”
how much there is or how many there are of something that you can quantify
From this reading “You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.”
giving satisfaction
From this reading “Your first three years at Yale were not satisfactory.”
a tough youth of 1950's and 1960's wearing Edwardian style clothes
From this reading “You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.”
lacking or indicating lack of confidence or assurance
From this reading “You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.”
not having or showing interest
From this reading “But I'm not uninterested; I watch.”
a university in Connecticut
From this reading “Your first three years at Yale were not satisfactory.”
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 You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading "I talk little about personal affairs.
matters of personal concern
From this reading "I talk little about personal affairs.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.
eagerly desirous
From this reading I was anxious about you.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Your first three years at Yale were not satisfactory.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But I'm not uninterested; I watch.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading Your first three years at Yale were not satisfactory.
annoy continually or chronically
From this reading You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I talk little about personal affairs.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But I'm not uninterested; I watch.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading "I talk little about personal affairs.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading But I'm not uninterested; I watch.
concerning or affecting a particular person or his or her private life and personality
From this reading "I talk little about personal affairs.
how much there is or how many there are of something that you can quantify
From this reading You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.
giving satisfaction
From this reading Your first three years at Yale were not satisfactory.
exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading "I talk little about personal affairs.
a tough youth of 1950's and 1960's wearing Edwardian style clothes
From this reading You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading Your first three years at Yale were not satisfactory.
lacking or indicating lack of confidence or assurance
From this reading You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.
not having or showing interest
From this reading But I'm not uninterested; I watch.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was anxious about you.
look attentively
From this reading But I'm not uninterested; I watch.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading You were a more uncertain quantity than Ted and Harry.
a university in Connecticut
From this reading Your first three years at Yale were not satisfactory.
a late time of life
From this reading Your first three years at Yale were not satisfactory.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I was anxious about you.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Your first three years at Yale were not satisfactory.
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.
