Chapter 30 of The Executioner's Knife is here in full — 698 sentences across 140 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXX
Chapter 30 of The Executioner's Knife is here in full — 698 sentences across 140 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
IN THE DUNGEON. It is still night. A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen. The cell is a semi-circular cave. Its greenish walls ooze with the moisture of winter.
Chapter 30 of The Executioner's Knife is here in full — 698 sentences across 140 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/139 · 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.
a geological formation consisting of an underground enclosure with access from the surface of the ground or from the sea
From this reading “The cell is a semi-circular cave.”
A small stone room in a prison where an inmate is locked behind iron bars.
From this reading “A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.”
the main tower within the walls of a medieval castle or fortress
From this reading “IN THE DUNGEON.”
in a faint and feeble manner
From this reading “A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.”
of the color between blue and yellow in the color spectrum; similar to the color of fresh grass
From this reading “Its greenish walls ooze with the moisture of winter.”
an artificial source of visible illumination
From this reading “A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.”
wetness caused by water
From this reading “Its greenish walls ooze with the moisture of winter.”
any thick, viscous matter
From this reading “Its greenish walls ooze with the moisture of winter.”
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.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
a large and stately mansion
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
a geological formation consisting of an underground enclosure with access from the surface of the ground or from the sea
From this reading The cell is a semi-circular cave.
A small stone room in a prison where an inmate is locked behind iron bars.
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
absence of light or illumination
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
the main tower within the walls of a medieval castle or fortress
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
the main tower within the walls of a medieval castle or fortress
From this reading IN THE DUNGEON.
in a faint and feeble manner
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
of the color between blue and yellow in the color spectrum; similar to the color of fresh grass
From this reading Its greenish walls ooze with the moisture of winter.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading IN THE DUNGEON.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It is still night.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It is still night.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading Its greenish walls ooze with the moisture of winter.
an artificial source of visible illumination
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
plural of “light” — (physics) electromagnetic radiation that can produce a visual sensation
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
wetness caused by water
From this reading Its greenish walls ooze with the moisture of winter.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading It is still night.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
any thick, viscous matter
From this reading Its greenish walls ooze with the moisture of winter.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The cell is a semi-circular cave.
not in physical motion
From this reading It is still night.
being or operating under the surface of the earth
From this reading A lamp feebly lights a dark subterraneous cell in the old donjon of the Castle of Rouen.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading IN THE DUNGEON.
plural of “wall” — an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading Its greenish walls ooze with the moisture of winter.
the coldest season of the year; in the northern hemisphere it extends from the winter solstice to the vernal equinox
From this reading Its greenish walls ooze with the moisture of winter.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Its greenish walls ooze with the moisture of winter.
Chapter 30 of The Executioner's Knife by Eugène Sue holds 698 sentences, grouped into 140 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 30 holds 698 sentences of The Executioner's Knife, unabridged, divided into 140 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 30 of The Executioner's Knife by Eugène Sue exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 698 sentences, grouped into 140 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 140 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 140 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 30 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 Executioner's Knife by Eugène Sue on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5473 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #37399 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #37399, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 456 minutes of reading across 1095 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Executioner's Knife section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 37 chapters of The Executioner's Knife 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 Executioner's Knife, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
