Chapter 26 of The Devil Is an Ass is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVI
Chapter 26 of The Devil Is an Ass is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Compare also _Henry V._ 4. 4. 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’ =5. 6.
Chapter 26 of The Devil Is an Ass is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
examine and note the similarities or differences of
From this reading “Compare also _Henry V._ 4.”
A short knife with a pointed and edged blade, used as a stealth weapon.
From this reading “76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’”
(Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell
From this reading “76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’”
plural of “nail” — horny plate covering and protecting part of the dorsal surface of the digits
From this reading “76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’”
decrease gradually or bit by bit
From this reading “76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’”
a deep prolonged loud noise
From this reading “76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’”
the qualities of a hero or heroine; exceptional or heroic courage when facing danger (especially in battle)
From this reading “76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’”
made or consisting of (entirely or in part) or employing wood
From this reading “76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’”
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 “76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Compare also _Henry V._ 4.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading =5.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 6.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
in addition
From this reading Compare also _Henry V._ 4.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
examine and note the similarities or differences of
From this reading Compare also _Henry V._ 4.
A short knife with a pointed and edged blade, used as a stealth weapon.
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
(Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
a unit of inductance in which an induced electromotive force of one volt is produced when the current is varied at the rate of one ampere per second
From this reading Compare also _Henry V._ 4.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
plural of “nail” — horny plate covering and protecting part of the dorsal surface of the digits
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
decrease gradually or bit by bit
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
participate in games or sport
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
a deep prolonged loud noise
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
the cardinal number that is the sum of nine and one; the base of the decimal system
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
a unit of potential equal to the potential difference between two points on a conductor carrying a current of 1 ampere when the power dissipated between the two points is 1 watt
From this reading Compare also _Henry V._ 4.
the qualities of a hero or heroine; exceptional or heroic courage when facing danger (especially in battle)
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
in the company of; together with
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
made or consisting of (entirely or in part) or employing wood
From this reading 76: ‘Bardolph and Nym had ten times more valor than this roaring devil i’ the old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.’
Chapter 26 of The Devil Is an Ass by Ben Jonson holds 407 sentences, grouped into 82 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 26 holds 407 sentences of The Devil Is an Ass, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 26 of The Devil Is an Ass by Ben Jonson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 407 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 26 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 Is an Ass by Ben Jonson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 13920 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #50150 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #50150, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2784 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Devil Is an Ass section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 35 chapters of The Devil Is an Ass 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 Is an Ass, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
