Chapter 1 of The Duke's Daughter is here in full — 136 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Duke's Daughter is here in full — 136 sentences across 28 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
HER PARENTS. The Duchess was a very sensible woman. This was her character, universally acknowledged. She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be. She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
Chapter 1 of The Duke's Daughter is here in full — 136 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.
recognized or made known or admitted
From this reading “This was her character, universally acknowledged.”
showing self-interest and shrewdness in dealing with others
From this reading “She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.”
the wife of a duke or a woman holding ducal title in her own right
From this reading “The Duchess was a very sensible woman.”
a judge of a probate court
From this reading “She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.”
plural of “parent” — a father or mother; one who begets or one who gives birth to or nurtures and raises a child; a relative who plays the role of guardian
From this reading “HER PARENTS.”
showing reason or sound judgment
From this reading “The Duchess was a very sensible woman.”
having great beauty and splendor
From this reading “She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.”
everywhere
From this reading “This was her character, universally acknowledged.”
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 “She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.”
In this reading “The Duchess was a very sensible woman.”
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 The Duchess was a very sensible woman.
recognized or made known or admitted
From this reading This was her character, universally acknowledged.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.
delighting the senses or exciting intellectual or emotional admiration
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
an imaginary person represented in a work of fiction (play or film or story)
From this reading This was her character, universally acknowledged.
showing self-interest and shrewdness in dealing with others
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
the wife of a duke or a woman holding ducal title in her own right
From this reading The Duchess was a very sensible woman.
containing as much or as many as is possible or normal
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading HER PARENTS.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
and not; used after a negative to add a second negative
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
a judge of a probate court
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
used with “to” to say what is right or advisable
From this reading She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.
plural of “parent” — a father or mother; one who begets or one who gives birth to or nurtures and raises a child; a relative who plays the role of guardian
From this reading HER PARENTS.
by chance
From this reading She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.
a human being
From this reading She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.
a general conscious awareness
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
showing reason or sound judgment
From this reading The Duchess was a very sensible woman.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.
having great beauty and splendor
From this reading She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The Duchess was a very sensible woman.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This was her character, universally acknowledged.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She might not perhaps be so splendid a person as a duchess ought to be.
everywhere
From this reading This was her character, universally acknowledged.
precisely as stated
From this reading The Duchess was a very sensible woman.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The Duchess was a very sensible woman.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading The Duchess was a very sensible woman.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading She had never been beautiful, nor was she clever in the ordinary sense of the word; but she was in the full sense of the word a sensible woman.
Chapter 1 of The Duke's Daughter by Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant holds 136 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 1 holds 136 sentences of The Duke's Daughter, unabridged, divided into 28 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Duke's Daughter by Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 136 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 1 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.
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Yes. All 1864 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #63901 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #63901, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 155 minutes of reading across 373 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Duke's Daughter section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 10 chapters of The Duke's Daughter 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 Duke's Daughter, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
