Chapter 3 of The Finer Grain is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Finer Grain is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Ah, but the old forms!” “Those are the most blatant. I mean the swaggering reproductions.” “Oh but,” she pleaded, “we can’t all be _really_ old.” “No, we can’t, Cornelia.
Chapter 3 of The Finer Grain is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
without any attempt at concealment; completely obvious
From this reading ““Those are the most blatant.”
plural of “form” — the phonological or orthographic sound or appearance of a word that can be used to describe or identify something
From this reading ““Ah, but the old forms!””
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading “I mean the swaggering reproductions.””
past form of “plead” — appeal or request earnestly
From this reading ““Oh but,” she pleaded, “we can’t all be _really_ old.””
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
plural of “reproduction” — the process of generating offspring
From this reading “I mean the swaggering reproductions.””
having or showing arrogant superiority to and disdain of those one views as unworthy
From this reading “I mean the swaggering reproductions.””
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading ““Those are the most blatant.”
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 “Ah, but the old forms!”
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading “Oh but,” she pleaded, “we can’t all be _really_ old.”
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “Those are the most blatant.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “Oh but,” she pleaded, “we can’t all be _really_ old.”
without any attempt at concealment; completely obvious
From this reading “Those are the most blatant.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading “Ah, but the old forms!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Oh but,” she pleaded, “we can’t all be _really_ old.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “No, we can’t, Cornelia.
plural of “form” — the phonological or orthographic sound or appearance of a word that can be used to describe or identify something
From this reading “Ah, but the old forms!”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I mean the swaggering reproductions.”
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading I mean the swaggering reproductions.”
used to form the superlative
From this reading “Those are the most blatant.
not any; not one
From this reading “No, we can’t, Cornelia.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading “Oh but,” she pleaded, “we can’t all be _really_ old.”
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading “Ah, but the old forms!”
past form of “plead” — appeal or request earnestly
From this reading “Oh but,” she pleaded, “we can’t all be _really_ old.”
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading “Oh but,” she pleaded, “we can’t all be _really_ old.”
plural of “reproduction” — the process of generating offspring
From this reading I mean the swaggering reproductions.”
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Oh but,” she pleaded, “we can’t all be _really_ old.”
having or showing arrogant superiority to and disdain of those one views as unworthy
From this reading I mean the swaggering reproductions.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “Ah, but the old forms!”
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading “Those are the most blatant.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “Oh but,” she pleaded, “we can’t all be _really_ old.”
Chapter 3 of The Finer Grain by Henry James holds 418 sentences, grouped into 84 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 3 holds 418 sentences of The Finer Grain, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Finer Grain by Henry James exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 418 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 3 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 Finer Grain by Henry James on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1655 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21968 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21968, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 137 minutes of reading across 331 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Finer Grain section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of The Finer Grain 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 Finer Grain, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
