Chapter 1 of The Escape is here in full — 470 sentences across 94 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Escape is here in full — 470 sentences across 94 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE ESCAPE; OR, A LEAP FOR FREEDOM. A Drama, IN FIVE ACTS. BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC. “Look on this picture, and on this.”—HAMLET. BOSTON: R. F. WALLCUT, 21 CORNHILL.
Chapter 1 of The Escape is here in full — 470 sentences across 94 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/94 · 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.
to or in a foreign country
From this reading “BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.”
a New Testament book describing the development of the early church from Christ's Ascension to Paul's sojourn at Rome
From this reading “A Drama, IN FIVE ACTS.”
state capital and largest city of Massachusetts; a major center for banking and financial services
From this reading “BOSTON: R. F. WALLCUT, 21 CORNHILL.”
a dramatic work intended for performance by actors on a stage
From this reading “A Drama, IN FIVE ACTS.”
a community of people smaller than a village
From this reading ““Look on this picture, and on this.”—HAMLET.”
a light, self-propelled movement upwards or forwards
From this reading “THE ESCAPE; OR, A LEAP FOR FREEDOM.”
plural of “sketch” — preliminary drawing for later elaboration
From this reading “BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.”
prolific English writer best known for his science-fiction novels; he also wrote on contemporary social problems and wrote popular accounts of history and science (1866-1946)
From this reading “BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.”
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 “A Drama, IN FIVE ACTS.”
In this reading “THE ESCAPE; OR, A LEAP FOR FREEDOM.”
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 BOSTON: R. F. WALLCUT, 21 CORNHILL.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading THE ESCAPE; OR, A LEAP FOR FREEDOM.
to or in a foreign country
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
a New Testament book describing the development of the early church from Christ's Ascension to Paul's sojourn at Rome
From this reading A Drama, IN FIVE ACTS.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
state capital and largest city of Massachusetts; a major center for banking and financial services
From this reading BOSTON: R. F. WALLCUT, 21 CORNHILL.
an orange of low brightness and saturation
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BOSTON: R. F. WALLCUT, 21 CORNHILL.
a dramatic work intended for performance by actors on a stage
From this reading A Drama, IN FIVE ACTS.
the act of escaping physically
From this reading THE ESCAPE; OR, A LEAP FOR FREEDOM.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
a degree on the Fahrenheit scale of temperature
From this reading BOSTON: R. F. WALLCUT, 21 CORNHILL.
the cardinal number that is the sum of four and one
From this reading A Drama, IN FIVE ACTS.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading THE ESCAPE; OR, A LEAP FOR FREEDOM.
the condition of being free; the power to act or speak or think without externally imposed restraints
From this reading THE ESCAPE; OR, A LEAP FOR FREEDOM.
a community of people smaller than a village
From this reading “Look on this picture, and on this.”—HAMLET.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading A Drama, IN FIVE ACTS.
a light, self-propelled movement upwards or forwards
From this reading THE ESCAPE; OR, A LEAP FOR FREEDOM.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading “Look on this picture, and on this.”—HAMLET.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “Look on this picture, and on this.”—HAMLET.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading THE ESCAPE; OR, A LEAP FOR FREEDOM.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
a visual representation (of an object or scene or person or abstraction) produced on a surface
From this reading “Look on this picture, and on this.”—HAMLET.
plural of “place” — a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
a unit of radiation exposure; the dose of ionizing radiation that will produce 1 electrostatic unit of electricity in 1 cc of dry air
From this reading BOSTON: R. F. WALLCUT, 21 CORNHILL.
plural of “sketch” — preliminary drawing for later elaboration
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE ESCAPE; OR, A LEAP FOR FREEDOM.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “Look on this picture, and on this.”—HAMLET.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BOSTON: R. F. WALLCUT, 21 CORNHILL.
prolific English writer best known for his science-fiction novels; he also wrote on contemporary social problems and wrote popular accounts of history and science (1866-1946)
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BY WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AUTHOR OF “CLOTEL,” “SKETCHES OF PLACES AND PEOPLE ABROAD,” ETC.
Chapter 1 of The Escape by William Wells Brown holds 470 sentences, grouped into 94 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 470 sentences of The Escape, unabridged, divided into 94 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Escape by William Wells Brown exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 470 sentences, grouped into 94 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 94 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 94 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 Escape by William Wells Brown on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1381 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #65519 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #65519, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 115 minutes of reading across 277 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Escape section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 3 chapters of The Escape 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 Escape, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
