Chapter 31 of The English and Scottish popular ballads, volume 3 (of 5) is here in full — 707 sentences across 142 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXI
Chapter 31 of The English and Scottish popular ballads, volume 3 (of 5) is here in full — 707 sentences across 142 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
24, 26. _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee? 27^{1,2}. But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee. 27^3.
Chapter 31 of The English and Scottish popular ballads, volume 3 (of 5) is here in full — 707 sentences across 142 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/141 · 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.
how long something has existed
From this reading “_For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?”
any of numerous hairy-bodied insects including social and solitary species
From this reading “But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.”
a person who shows fear or timidity
From this reading “_For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?”
completely unclothed
From this reading “But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.”
given to sympathy or gentleness or sentimentality
From this reading “_For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?”
an old word for “you”, as the object, speaking to one person
From this reading “_For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?”
direct one's course or way
From this reading “But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.”
an old form of “were”, used with “thou”
From this reading “_For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?”
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.
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 27^{1,2}.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 24, 26.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 24, 26.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 27^{1,2}.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 27^3.
how long something has existed
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
any of numerous hairy-bodied insects including social and solitary species
From this reading But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.
a person who shows fear or timidity
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
engage in
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
to a great degree or extent
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
completely unclothed
From this reading But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
given to sympathy or gentleness or sentimentality
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
an old word for “you”, as the object, speaking to one person
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
direct one's course or way
From this reading But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.
an old form of “were”, used with “thou”
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
at the time that
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.
in the company of; together with
From this reading But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _For these_: Now fye upon thee, coward Francis, Thou never learnedst this of mee; When thou wert yong and tender of age, Why did I make soe much of thee?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading But, father, I will wend with you, Unarmd and naked will I bee.
Chapter 31 of The English and Scottish popular ballads, volume 3 (of 5) by Francis James [Editor] Child holds 707 sentences, grouped into 142 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 31 holds 707 sentences of The English and Scottish popular ballads, volume 3 (of 5), unabridged, divided into 142 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 31 of The English and Scottish popular ballads, volume 3 (of 5) by Francis James [Editor] Child exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 707 sentences, grouped into 142 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 142 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 142 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 31 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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Words and structures a reader meets early in The English and Scottish popular ballads, volume 3 (of 5), each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
