Chapter 5 of The Firelight Fairy Book is here in full — 421 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of The Firelight Fairy Book is here in full — 421 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"It is the Shepherd!" cried Eye-o and Ear-o. "The hour is at hand to send the clouds over the earth. Quick, Giles, unbar the doors!" So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide. A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
Chapter 5 of The Firelight Fairy Book is here in full — 421 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
plural of “cloud” — any collection of particles (e.g., smoke or dust) or gases that is visible
From this reading “"The hour is at hand to send the clouds over the earth.”
any creature of exceptional size
From this reading “So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.”
plural of “hinge” — a joint that holds two parts together so that one can swing relative to the other
From this reading “A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.”
plural of “portal” — a grand and imposing entrance (often extended metaphorically)
From this reading “A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.”
a clergyman who watches over a group of people
From this reading “"It is the Shepherd!" cried Eye-o and Ear-o.”
move fast, noisily, and heavily
From this reading “A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.”
Released from physical or magical bonds; free and unrestricted.
From this reading “So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.”
the capability of conscious choice and decision and intention
From this reading “So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.”
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 sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "It is the Shepherd!" cried Eye-o and Ear-o.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "The hour is at hand to send the clouds over the earth.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
come out better in a competition, race, or conflict
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
plural of “cloud” — any collection of particles (e.g., smoke or dust) or gases that is visible
From this reading "The hour is at hand to send the clouds over the earth.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading "It is the Shepherd!" cried Eye-o and Ear-o.
plural of “door” — a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading Quick, Giles, unbar the doors!"
the sense organ for hearing and equilibrium
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "It is the Shepherd!" cried Eye-o and Ear-o.
the 3rd planet from the sun; the planet we live on
From this reading "The hour is at hand to send the clouds over the earth.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "It is the Shepherd!" cried Eye-o and Ear-o.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
any creature of exceptional size
From this reading So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Quick, Giles, unbar the doors!"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading "The hour is at hand to send the clouds over the earth.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
plural of “hinge” — a joint that holds two parts together so that one can swing relative to the other
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading "The hour is at hand to send the clouds over the earth.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "It is the Shepherd!" cried Eye-o and Ear-o.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "It is the Shepherd!" cried Eye-o and Ear-o.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.
above and across; more than
From this reading "The hour is at hand to send the clouds over the earth.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.
plural of “portal” — a grand and imposing entrance (often extended metaphorically)
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
accomplished rapidly and without delay
From this reading Quick, Giles, unbar the doors!"
a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
cause to go somewhere
From this reading "The hour is at hand to send the clouds over the earth.
a clergyman who watches over a group of people
From this reading "It is the Shepherd!" cried Eye-o and Ear-o.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.
the particular auditory effect produced by a given cause
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "It is the Shepherd!" cried Eye-o and Ear-o.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.
move fast, noisily, and heavily
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "The hour is at hand to send the clouds over the earth.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
remove a bar from (a door)
From this reading Quick, Giles, unbar the doors!"
Released from physical or magical bonds; free and unrestricted.
From this reading So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading A sound as of thunder heard from far away over the sea beat upon Giles's ear as the portals turned upon their hinges.
the capability of conscious choice and decision and intention
From this reading So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.
having great (or a certain) extent from one side to the other
From this reading So Giles unbound the giant doors, which of their own volition opened wide.
Chapter 5 of The Firelight Fairy Book by Henry Beston holds 421 sentences, grouped into 85 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 5 holds 421 sentences of The Firelight Fairy Book, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of The Firelight Fairy Book by Henry Beston exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 421 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 5 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 Firelight Fairy Book by Henry Beston on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2073 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #19207 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #19207, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 172 minutes of reading across 415 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Firelight Fairy Book section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of The Firelight Fairy Book 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 Firelight Fairy Book, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
