Chapter 3 of The Devil is here in full — 138 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Devil is here in full — 138 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him. Olga looked apprehensively about her. Some mysterious presence seemed to oppress her. She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist. "Oh, what folly!" she cried to herself.
Chapter 3 of The Devil is here in full — 138 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/27 · 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.
plural of “button” — a round fastener sewn to shirts and coats etc to fit through buttonholes
From this reading “She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.”
the act of closing something
From this reading “He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him.”
the trait of acting stupidly or rashly
From this reading “"Oh, what folly!" she cried to herself.”
past form of “fumble” — feel about uncertainly or blindly
From this reading “She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.”
of an obscure nature
From this reading “Some mysterious presence seemed to oppress her.”
come down on or keep down by unjust use of one's authority
From this reading “Some mysterious presence seemed to oppress her.”
workplace for the teaching or practice of an art
From this reading “He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him.”
the narrowing of the body between the ribs and hips
From this reading “She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Olga looked apprehensively about her.
with anxiety or apprehension
From this reading Olga looked apprehensively about her.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.
at or toward the back of something
From this reading He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him.
plural of “button” — a round fastener sewn to shirts and coats etc to fit through buttonholes
From this reading She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.
the act of closing something
From this reading He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading "Oh, what folly!" she cried to herself.
plural of “door” — a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him.
plural of “finger” — any of the terminal members of the hand (sometimes excepting the thumb)
From this reading She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.
the trait of acting stupidly or rashly
From this reading "Oh, what folly!" she cried to herself.
past form of “fumble” — feel about uncertainly or blindly
From this reading She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Olga looked apprehensively about her.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading "Oh, what folly!" she cried to herself.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Olga looked apprehensively about her.
of an obscure nature
From this reading Some mysterious presence seemed to oppress her.
marked by calm self-control (especially in trying circumstances); unemotional
From this reading She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading "Oh, what folly!" she cried to herself.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Olga looked apprehensively about her.
come down on or keep down by unjust use of one's authority
From this reading Some mysterious presence seemed to oppress her.
the state of being present; current existence
From this reading Some mysterious presence seemed to oppress her.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Some mysterious presence seemed to oppress her.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading Some mysterious presence seemed to oppress her.
workplace for the teaching or practice of an art
From this reading He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He left the room, closing the studio doors behind him.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Some mysterious presence seemed to oppress her.
the narrowing of the body between the ribs and hips
From this reading She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "Oh, what folly!" she cried to herself.
in the company of; together with
From this reading She fumbled with nerveless fingers at the buttons of her waist.
Chapter 3 of The Devil by Joseph O'Brien holds 138 sentences, grouped into 28 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 3 holds 138 sentences of The Devil, unabridged, divided into 28 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Devil by Joseph O'Brien exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 138 sentences, grouped into 28 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 28 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 28 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 3 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 Devil by Joseph O'Brien on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2553 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #25947 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #25947, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 212 minutes of reading across 511 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Devil section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 14 chapters of The Devil 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 Devil, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
