Chapter 1 of The Dutch Twins is here in full — 511 sentences across 103 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Dutch Twins is here in full — 511 sentences across 103 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The Twins loved buttermilk porridge. They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed. This is a picture of the bed! It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry. The very next thing the Twins knew, it was morning, and there was Vrouw Vedder calling to them.
Chapter 1 of The Dutch Twins is here in full — 511 sentences across 103 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 44/102 · 5 reading units · Lines 216–220
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.
goddess of criminal rashness and its punishment
From this reading “They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.”
a bowling game played on a level lawn with biased wooden balls that are rolled at a jack
From this reading “They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.”
residue from making butter from sour raw milk; or pasteurized milk curdled by adding a culture
From this reading “The Twins loved buttermilk porridge.”
a small room (or recess) or cabinet used for storage space
From this reading “It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.”
a small storeroom for storing foods or wines
From this reading “It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.”
soft food made by boiling oatmeal or other meal or legumes in water or milk until thick
From this reading “The Twins loved buttermilk porridge.”
A flat horizontal plane used to hold books or scrolls in a library.
From this reading “It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.”
(mineralogy) two interwoven crystals that are mirror images on each other
From this reading “The Twins loved buttermilk porridge.”
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 This is a picture of the bed!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
goddess of criminal rashness and its punishment
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
a bowling game played on a level lawn with biased wooden balls that are rolled at a jack
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
residue from making butter from sour raw milk; or pasteurized milk curdled by adding a culture
From this reading The Twins loved buttermilk porridge.
the particular occupation for which you are trained
From this reading The very next thing the Twins knew, it was morning, and there was Vrouw Vedder calling to them.
a small room (or recess) or cabinet used for storage space
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
the act of departing
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading This is a picture of the bed!
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
a room equipped for preparing meals
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
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 The very next thing the Twins knew, it was morning, and there was Vrouw Vedder calling to them.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
held dear
From this reading The Twins loved buttermilk porridge.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading The very next thing the Twins knew, it was morning, and there was Vrouw Vedder calling to them.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading The very next thing the Twins knew, it was morning, and there was Vrouw Vedder calling to them.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
a small storeroom for storing foods or wines
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
a visual representation (of an object or scene or person or abstraction) produced on a surface
From this reading This is a picture of the bed!
soft food made by boiling oatmeal or other meal or legumes in water or milk until thick
From this reading The Twins loved buttermilk porridge.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
precisely, exactly
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
A flat horizontal plane used to hold books or scrolls in a library.
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The Twins loved buttermilk porridge.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
in or at that place or location
From this reading The very next thing the Twins knew, it was morning, and there was Vrouw Vedder calling to them.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
a special situation
From this reading The very next thing the Twins knew, it was morning, and there was Vrouw Vedder calling to them.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This is a picture of the bed!
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading They each ate three bowls of it, and then their mother put them to bed.
(mineralogy) two interwoven crystals that are mirror images on each other
From this reading The Twins loved buttermilk porridge.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The very next thing the Twins knew, it was morning, and there was Vrouw Vedder calling to them.
precisely as stated
From this reading The very next thing the Twins knew, it was morning, and there was Vrouw Vedder calling to them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The very next thing the Twins knew, it was morning, and there was Vrouw Vedder calling to them.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It opened like a cupboard right into the kitchen, and it was like going to bed on a shelf in the pantry.
Chapter 1 of The Dutch Twins by Lucy Fitch Perkins holds 511 sentences, grouped into 103 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 511 sentences of The Dutch Twins, unabridged, divided into 103 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Dutch Twins by Lucy Fitch Perkins exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 511 sentences, grouped into 103 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 103 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 103 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.
Common questions about reading The Dutch Twins by Lucy Fitch Perkins on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1516 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #4012 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #4012, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 126 minutes of reading across 304 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Dutch Twins section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 3 chapters of The Dutch Twins 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 Dutch Twins, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
