Chapter 20 of The Czar is here in full — 267 sentences across 54 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Czar is here in full — 267 sentences across 54 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE AIDE-DE-CAMP OF ST. PRIEST. “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these? But I would _die_, said he.” The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
Chapter 20 of The Czar is here in full — 267 sentences across 54 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/53 · 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.
feel physical pain
From this reading ““You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?”
the total spent for goods or services including money and time and labor
From this reading “The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.”
traveling across
From this reading “The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.”
feel or handle with the fingers
From this reading ““You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?”
plural of “fugitive” — someone who flees from an uncongenial situation
From this reading “The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.”
devoid of warmth and cordiality; expressive of unfriendliness or disdain
From this reading “The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.”
very unhappy; full of misery
From this reading “The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.”
a state of acute pain
From this reading “The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.”
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 “The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.”
In this reading “The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.”
In this reading “The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.”
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.
feel physical pain
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
an officer who acts as military assistant to a more senior officer
From this reading THE AIDE-DE-CAMP OF ST.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But I would _die_, said he.”
the total spent for goods or services including money and time and labor
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
traveling across
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading But I would _die_, said he.”
feel or handle with the fingers
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
set up or found
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
plural of “fugitive” — someone who flees from an uncongenial situation
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading But I would _die_, said he.”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading But I would _die_, said he.”
devoid of warmth and cordiality; expressive of unfriendliness or disdain
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
the land on which real estate is located
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
very unhappy; full of misery
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
not any; not one
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE AIDE-DE-CAMP OF ST.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
a clergyman in Christian churches who has the authority to perform or administer various religious rites; one of the Holy Orders
From this reading PRIEST.
past form of “promise” — make a promise or commitment
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading But I would _die_, said he.”
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE AIDE-DE-CAMP OF ST.
past form of “succeed” — attain success or reach a desired goal
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
a state of acute pain
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE AIDE-DE-CAMP OF ST.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
United States actress and singer (1896-1977)
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
which person or people
From this reading The miserable fugitives who succeeded, at the cost of so much suffering, in crossing the icy waters of the Beresina, found no “promised land” on the other side.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “You would not let your little finger ache For such as these?
Chapter 20 of The Czar by Deborah Alcock holds 267 sentences, grouped into 54 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 20 holds 267 sentences of The Czar, unabridged, divided into 54 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Czar by Deborah Alcock exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 267 sentences, grouped into 54 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 54 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 54 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 20 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 Czar by Deborah Alcock on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7341 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #49782 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #49782, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1469 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Czar section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Czar 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 Czar, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
