Chapter 1 of The Crow's Inn tragedy is here in full — 281 sentences across 57 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Crow's Inn tragedy is here in full — 281 sentences across 57 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square. Bechcombe and Turner was one of the oldest legal firms in London. Their offices were dingy, not to say grimy-looking. The doors and windows had evidently not had a coat of paint for years. There were no lifts in Crow's Inn.
Chapter 1 of The Crow's Inn tragedy is here in full — 281 sentences across 57 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/56 · 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.
possessive form of “crow” — black birds having a raucous call
From this reading “The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.”
thickly covered with ingrained dirt or soot
From this reading “Their offices were dingy, not to say grimy-looking.”
plural of “firm” — the members of a business organization that owns or operates one or more establishments
From this reading “Bechcombe and Turner was one of the oldest legal firms in London.”
established by or founded upon law or official or accepted rules
From this reading “Bechcombe and Turner was one of the oldest legal firms in London.”
plural of “lift” — the act of giving temporary assistance
From this reading “There were no lifts in Crow's Inn.”
plural of “office” — place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed
From this reading “The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.”
superlative of “old” — (used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading “Bechcombe and Turner was one of the oldest legal firms in London.”
United States slave and insurrectionist who in 1831 led a rebellion of slaves in Virginia; he was captured and executed (1800-1831)
From this reading “The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.”
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.
the floor of a building that is at or nearest to the level of the ground around the building
In this reading “The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.”
pursue or resume
In this reading “The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.”
In this reading “The doors and windows had evidently not had a coat of paint for years.”
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 The doors and windows had evidently not had a coat of paint for years.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
an outer garment that has sleeves and covers the body from shoulder down; worn outdoors
From this reading The doors and windows had evidently not had a coat of paint for years.
a place off to the side of an area
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
possessive form of “crow” — black birds having a raucous call
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
thickly covered with ingrained dirt or soot
From this reading Their offices were dingy, not to say grimy-looking.
plural of “door” — a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading The doors and windows had evidently not had a coat of paint for years.
unmistakably (“plain” is often used informally for “plainly”)
From this reading The doors and windows had evidently not had a coat of paint for years.
plural of “firm” — the members of a business organization that owns or operates one or more establishments
From this reading Bechcombe and Turner was one of the oldest legal firms in London.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
the inside lower horizontal surface (as of a room, hallway, tent, or other structure)
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The doors and windows had evidently not had a coat of paint for years.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Their offices were dingy, not to say grimy-looking.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The doors and windows had evidently not had a coat of paint for years.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Bechcombe and Turner was one of the oldest legal firms in London.
a hotel providing overnight lodging for travelers
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
established by or founded upon law or official or accepted rules
From this reading Bechcombe and Turner was one of the oldest legal firms in London.
plural of “lift” — the act of giving temporary assistance
From this reading There were no lifts in Crow's Inn.
the capital and largest city of England; located on the Thames in southeastern England; financial and industrial and cultural center
From this reading Bechcombe and Turner was one of the oldest legal firms in London.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
not any; not one
From this reading There were no lifts in Crow's Inn.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Their offices were dingy, not to say grimy-looking.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
plural of “office” — place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
superlative of “old” — (used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Bechcombe and Turner was one of the oldest legal firms in London.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Bechcombe and Turner was one of the oldest legal firms in London.
make a painting
From this reading The doors and windows had evidently not had a coat of paint for years.
express in words
From this reading Their offices were dingy, not to say grimy-looking.
make square
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Their offices were dingy, not to say grimy-looking.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There were no lifts in Crow's Inn.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Their offices were dingy, not to say grimy-looking.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
United States slave and insurrectionist who in 1831 led a rebellion of slaves in Virginia; he was captured and executed (1800-1831)
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Bechcombe and Turner was one of the oldest legal firms in London.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Their offices were dingy, not to say grimy-looking.
including all components without exception; being one unit or constituting the full amount or extent or duration; complete
From this reading The offices of Messrs. Bechcombe and Turner took up the whole of the first floor of the corner house of Crow's Inn Square.
(trademark) an operating system with a graphical user interface
From this reading The doors and windows had evidently not had a coat of paint for years.
a late time of life
From this reading The doors and windows had evidently not had a coat of paint for years.
Chapter 1 of The Crow's Inn tragedy by Annie Haynes holds 281 sentences, grouped into 57 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 281 sentences of The Crow's Inn tragedy, unabridged, divided into 57 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Crow's Inn tragedy by Annie Haynes exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 281 sentences, grouped into 57 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 57 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 57 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.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in The Crow's Inn tragedy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
