Chapter 4 of The Enchanted April is here in full — 161 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Enchanted April is here in full — 161 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
It was cloudy in Italy, which surprised them. They had expected brilliant sunshine. But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat. Neither of them had ever been there before. Both gazed out of the windows with rapt faces.
Chapter 4 of The Enchanted April is here in full — 161 sentences across 33 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/32 · 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.
of surpassing excellence
From this reading “They had expected brilliant sunshine.”
plural of “cloud” — any collection of particles (e.g., smoke or dust) or gases that is visible
From this reading “But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat.”
lacking definite form or limits
From this reading “It was cloudy in Italy, which surprised them.”
having an (over)abundance of flesh
From this reading “But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat.”
past form of “gaze” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading “Both gazed out of the windows with rapt faces.”
a republic in southern Europe on the Italian Peninsula; was the core of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire between the 4th century BC and the 5th century AD
From this reading “It was cloudy in Italy, which surprised them.”
feeling great rapture or delight
From this reading “Both gazed out of the windows with rapt faces.”
the rays of the sun
From this reading “They had expected brilliant sunshine.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Neither of them had ever been there before.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading Neither of them had ever been there before.
the two together, not just one
From this reading Both gazed out of the windows with rapt faces.
of surpassing excellence
From this reading They had expected brilliant sunshine.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat.
plural of “cloud” — any collection of particles (e.g., smoke or dust) or gases that is visible
From this reading But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat.
lacking definite form or limits
From this reading It was cloudy in Italy, which surprised them.
at any time
From this reading Neither of them had ever been there before.
considered likely or probable to happen or arrive
From this reading They had expected brilliant sunshine.
plural of “face” — the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading Both gazed out of the windows with rapt faces.
having an (over)abundance of flesh
From this reading But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat.
past form of “gaze” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading Both gazed out of the windows with rapt faces.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading They had expected brilliant sunshine.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It was cloudy in Italy, which surprised them.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was cloudy in Italy, which surprised them.
a republic in southern Europe on the Italian Peninsula; was the core of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire between the 4th century BC and the 5th century AD
From this reading It was cloudy in Italy, which surprised them.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat.
not one and not the other of two
From this reading Neither of them had ever been there before.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Neither of them had ever been there before.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Both gazed out of the windows with rapt faces.
feeling great rapture or delight
From this reading Both gazed out of the windows with rapt faces.
the rays of the sun
From this reading They had expected brilliant sunshine.
taken unawares or suddenly and feeling wonder or astonishment
From this reading It was cloudy in Italy, which surprised them.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading It was cloudy in Italy, which surprised them.
in or at that place or location
From this reading Neither of them had ever been there before.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They had expected brilliant sunshine.
precisely as stated
From this reading But never mind: it was Italy, and the very clouds looked fat.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was cloudy in Italy, which surprised them.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading It was cloudy in Italy, which surprised them.
(trademark) an operating system with a graphical user interface
From this reading Both gazed out of the windows with rapt faces.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Both gazed out of the windows with rapt faces.
Chapter 4 of The Enchanted April by Elizabeth Von Arnim holds 161 sentences, grouped into 33 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 4 holds 161 sentences of The Enchanted April, unabridged, divided into 33 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Enchanted April by Elizabeth Von Arnim exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 161 sentences, grouped into 33 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 33 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 33 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 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.
Common questions about reading The Enchanted April by Elizabeth Von Arnim on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4235 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #16389 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #16389, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 352 minutes of reading across 847 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Enchanted April section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 21 chapters of The Enchanted April 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 Enchanted April, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
