Chapter 17 of The Disturbing Charm is here in full — 65 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of The Disturbing Charm is here in full — 65 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less." Bacon. Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once. Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk. She knew that she must tire herself out.
Chapter 17 of The Disturbing Charm is here in full — 65 sentences across 13 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/13 · 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.
back and sides of a hog salted and dried or smoked; usually sliced thin and fried
From this reading “Bacon.”
plural of “bag” — a flexible container with a single opening
From this reading “Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.”
English clergyman who invented the power loom (1743-1823)
From this reading “Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.”
arrange in a container
From this reading “Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.”
a garment worn around the head or neck or shoulders for warmth or decoration
From this reading “Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.”
a particular situation
From this reading “Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.”
bound or secured closely
From this reading “Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.”
lose interest or become bored with something or somebody
From this reading “She knew that she must tire herself out.”
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.
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
In this reading “Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.”
put clothing on one's body
In this reading “Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.”
move upward
In this reading “Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.”
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 Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
back and sides of a hog salted and dried or smoked; usually sliced thin and fried
From this reading Bacon.
plural of “bag” — a flexible container with a single opening
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
English clergyman who invented the power loom (1743-1823)
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
made or become different in nature or form
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
an outer garment that has sleeves and covers the body from shoulder down; worn outdoors
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
the one or ones belonging to her
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object
From this reading She knew that she must tire herself out.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
in place of, or as an alternative to
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading She knew that she must tire herself out.
used to form the comparative of some adjectives and adverbs
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading She knew that she must tire herself out.
not any; not one
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
on one occasion
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading She knew that she must tire herself out.
above and across; more than
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
arrange in a container
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
a garment worn around the head or neck or shoulders for warmth or decoration
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
a particular situation
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
in or at that place or location
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
bound or secured closely
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
lose interest or become bored with something or somebody
From this reading She knew that she must tire herself out.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading DROP-SCENE "There is no man that imparteth his griefs to his friend but he grieveth the less."
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
the act of traveling by foot
From this reading Instead, she put on her coat, tied a scarf over her head, changed her shoes, and went for a walk.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Mrs. Cartwright went up to her room, but she did not pack those bags of hers at once.
Chapter 17 of The Disturbing Charm by Berta Ruck holds 65 sentences, grouped into 13 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 17 holds 65 sentences of The Disturbing Charm, unabridged, divided into 13 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of The Disturbing Charm by Berta Ruck exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 65 sentences, grouped into 13 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 13 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 13 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 17 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 Disturbing Charm by Berta Ruck on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5925 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #36442 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #36442, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 493 minutes of reading across 1185 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Disturbing Charm section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 32 chapters of The Disturbing Charm 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 Disturbing Charm, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
