The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5)

Chapter XXV

Chapter 25 of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5) is here in full — 506 sentences across 102 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Francis James [Editor] Child • Curated US English Learning Edition

Cover illustration for The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5)

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B #a.# Jamieson-Brown MS., fol.

29.

#b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

Narrator

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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English

LEARNER DICTIONARY

Archivist

/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

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A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter XXV Reading 1/101

The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5) Francis James [Editor] Child

Chapter XXV

Chapter 25 of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5) is here in full — 506 sentences across 102 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

He stepped in, gave her a kiss, The royal brand he brought him wi; Her breath was sweet, her hair grew short, And twisted nane about the tree, And smilingly she came about, As fair a woman as fair could be. B #a.# Jamieson-Brown MS., fol. 29. #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment." 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5)

Chapter XXV

Chapter 25 of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5) is here in full — 506 sentences across 102 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/101 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

Line 2

B #a.# Jamieson-Brown MS., fol.

Line 3

29.

Line 4

#b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

Line 5

'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

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.

brand noun US /brænd/

a name given to a product or service

From this reading “He stepped in, gave her a kiss, The royal brand he brought him wi; Her breath was sweet, her hair grew short, And twisted nane about the tree, And smilingly she came about, As fair a woman as fair could be.”

corrections noun US /kərˈekʃənz/

the department of local government that is responsible for managing the treatment of convicted offenders

From this reading “#b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."”

fragment noun US /ˈfræɡ.mənt/

A small part broken or separated off something larger.

From this reading “#b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."”

hardest adverb US /ˈhɑːrdəst/

superlative of “hard” — with effort or force or vigor

From this reading “'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.”

recited verb US /rəˈsaɪtɪd/

past form of “recite” — recite in elocution

From this reading “#b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."”

Scott's noun US /skɑːts/

possessive form of “scott” — award-winning United States film actor (1928-1999)

From this reading “#b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."”

smilingly adverb US /ˈsmaɪlɪŋli/

with smiles; in a smiling manner

weird adjective US /wɪrd/

suggesting the operation of supernatural influences

From this reading “'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.”

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

Come here verb + particle

In this reading “'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.”

All words in this reading · 75

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.

1802

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading 29.

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading He stepped in, gave her a kiss, The royal brand he brought him wi; Her breath was sweet, her hair grew short, And twisted nane about the tree, And smilingly she came about, As fair a woman as fair could be.

aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/

on the subject of; concerning

AndeterminerUS /æn/

the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

AndconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

AsconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

BnounUS /biː/

aerobic rod-shaped spore-producing bacterium; often occurring in chainlike formations; found primarily in soil

From this reading B #a.# Jamieson-Brown MS., fol.

beauxiliary verbUS /biː/

used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses

brandnounUS /brænd/

a name given to a product or service

breathnounUS /breθ/

the process of taking in and expelling air during breathing

broughtverbUS /brɔːt/

inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere

BrownnounUS /braʊn/

an orange of low brightness and saturation

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

cameverbUS /keɪm/

inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

ComeverbUS /kʌm/

move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

correctionsnounUS /kərˈekʃənz/

the department of local government that is responsible for managing the treatment of convicted offenders

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

eer

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

fairadjectiveUS /fer/

free from favoritism or self-interest or bias or deception; conforming with established standards or rules

feedverbUS /fiːd/

provide as food

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

fol

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading B #a.# Jamieson-Brown MS., fol.

fragmentnounUS /ˈfræɡ.mənt/

A small part broken or separated off something larger.

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

freelyadverbUS /ˈfriːli/

in a free manner

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

gaveverbUS /ɡeɪv/

inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense

grewverbUS /ɡruː/

inflected form of “grow” — pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become

hairnounUS /her/

a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss

hardestadverbUS /ˈhɑːrdəst/

superlative of “hard” — with effort or force or vigor

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

HepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

headnounUS /hed/

the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

hereadverbUS /hiːr/

in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

IInoun

the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

Jamieson-Brown

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading B #a.# Jamieson-Brown MS., fol.

kissnounUS /kɪs/

the act of caressing with the lips (or an instance thereof)

kneenounUS /niː/

hinge joint in the human leg connecting the tibia and fibula with the femur and protected in front by the patella

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

ladynounUS /ˈleɪdi/

a polite name for any woman

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

layverbUS /leɪ/

put into a certain place or abstract location

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

lowadjectiveUS /loʊ/

less than normal in degree or intensity or amount

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

Minstrelsynoun

a troupe of minstrels

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

MSnounUS /mɪz/

a chronic progressive nervous disorder involving loss of myelin sheath around certain nerve fibers

From this reading B #a.# Jamieson-Brown MS., fol.

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

nane

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

NodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

readverbUS /red/

interpret something that is written or printed

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

recitedverbUS /rəˈsaɪtɪd/

past form of “recite” — recite in elocution

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

royaladjectiveUS /ˈrɔɪəl/

of or relating to or indicative of or issued or performed by a king or queen or other monarch

Scott'snounUS /skɑːts/

possessive form of “scott” — award-winning United States film actor (1928-1999)

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

shortadjectiveUS /ʃɔːrt/

primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration

smilinglyadverbUS /ˈsmaɪlɪŋli/

with smiles; in a smiling manner

steppedverbUS /stept/

inflected form of “step” — shift or move by taking a step

sweetadjectiveUS /swiːt/

having or denoting the characteristic taste of sugar

ThatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

treenounUS /triː/

a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms

twistedadjectiveUS /ˈtwɪstɪd/

having an intended meaning altered or misrepresented

Tytler's

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

warnounUS /wɔːr/

the waging of armed conflict against an enemy

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

weirdadjectiveUS /wɪrd/

suggesting the operation of supernatural influences

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

winoun

a midwestern state in north central United States

willmodal verbUS /wɪl/

used to talk about the future, or about willingness

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

William

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading #b.# Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

womannounUS /ˈwʊmən/

an adult female person (as opposed to a man)

youpronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

yourdeterminerUS /jɔːr/

belonging to the person or people being spoken to

From this reading 'Come here, come here, you freely feed, An lay your head low on my knee; The hardest weird I will you read That eer war read to a lady.

Chapter 25 of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5) by Francis James [Editor] Child holds 506 sentences, grouped into 102 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 25 of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5) contain?

Chapter 25 holds 506 sentences of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5), unabridged, divided into 102 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 25 of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5) by Francis James [Editor] Child exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 506 sentences, grouped into 102 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 25 of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5)?

Work through the 102 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 102 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 25 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 25 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 20468 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #44969 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #44969, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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About 600 minutes of reading across 4094 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Vocabulary met early in The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5)

Words and structures a reader meets early in The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5), each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

George: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5); the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Sweepstake: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5); the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Sweet: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5); the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Trinity: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, Volume 1 (of 5); the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.

Chapter XXV

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