Chapter IV
Chapter 4
Chapter 4 of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy is here in full — 267 sentences across 54 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MEL. Incest! O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction. [_Aside_.] LADY PLYANT.
The Double-Dealer: A Comedy
Chapter IV · Chapter 4
Chapter 4 of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy is here in full — 267 sentences across 54 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
English subtitles · tap any word to listen
1 / 5
MEL.
Incest!
O
my
precious
aunt,
and
the
devil
in
conjunction.
[_Aside_.]
LADY
PLYANT.
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
The Double-Dealer: A Comedy
Chapter IV · Chapter 4
Chapter 4 of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy 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
Line 1
MEL.
Line 2
Incest!
/ˈɪnsest/
Line 3
O
my
precious
aunt,
and
the
devil
in
conjunction.
/oʊ maɪ ˈpreʃəs ænt ənd ðə ˈdevəl ɪn kənˈdʒʌŋkʃən/
Line 4
[_Aside_.]
/əˈsaɪd/
Line 5
LADY
PLYANT.
Learner Dictionary
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.
Aside
adverb
US /əˈsaɪd/
on or to one side
aunt
noun
US /ænt/
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading “O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.”
conjunction
noun
US /kənˈdʒʌŋkʃən/
the temporal property of two things happening at the same time
From this reading “O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.”
devil
noun
US /ˈdevəl/
(Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell
From this reading “O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.”
Incest
noun
US /ˈɪnsest/
sexual intercourse between persons too closely related to marry (as between a parent and a child)
From this reading “Incest!”
lady
noun
US /ˈleɪdi/
a polite name for any woman
From this reading “LADY PLYANT.”
precious
adjective
US /ˈpreʃəs/
characterized by feeling or showing fond affection for
From this reading “O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.”
All words in this reading · 14
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.
andconjunctionUS /ənd/
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.
AsideadverbUS /əˈsaɪd/
on or to one side
From this reading [_Aside_.]
auntnounUS /ænt/
the sister of your father or mother; the wife of your uncle
From this reading O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.
conjunctionnounUS /kənˈdʒʌŋkʃən/
the temporal property of two things happening at the same time
From this reading O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.
devilnounUS /ˈdevəl/
(Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell
From this reading O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.
inprepositionUS /ɪn/
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.
IncestnounUS /ˈɪnsest/
sexual intercourse between persons too closely related to marry (as between a parent and a child)
From this reading Incest!
LADYnounUS /ˈleɪdi/
a polite name for any woman
From this reading LADY PLYANT.
MEL
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading MEL.
mydeterminerUS /maɪ/
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.
OnounUS /oʊ/
a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust
From this reading O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.
PLYANT
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LADY PLYANT.
preciousadjectiveUS /ˈpreʃəs/
characterized by feeling or showing fond affection for
From this reading O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.
thedeterminerUS /ðə/
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading O my precious aunt, and the devil in conjunction.
Chapter 4 of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy by William Congreve 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.
What does chapter 4 of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy contain?
Chapter 4 holds 267 sentences of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy, unabridged, divided into 54 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy by William Congreve 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.
How do I study chapter 4 of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy?
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.
Can chapter 4 be read aloud to me?
Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 4 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.
Questions about reading The Double-Dealer: A Comedy
Common questions about reading The Double-Dealer: A Comedy by William Congreve on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Is this the complete text of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy?
Yes. All 1899 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1191 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Which edition of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy is used?
Project Gutenberg eBook #1191, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
How long does The Double-Dealer: A Comedy take to read?
About 158 minutes of reading across 380 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to read The Double-Dealer: A Comedy section by section
How to work through The Double-Dealer: A Comedy section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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Vocabulary met early in The Double-Dealer: A Comedy
Words and structures a reader meets early in The Double-Dealer: A Comedy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
- Interdum
- A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
- Tamen
- A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
- Vocem
- A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
- Comoedia
- A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Double-Dealer: A Comedy; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.