Chapter 1 of The first of April is here in full — 214 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The first of April is here in full — 214 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
POEM. CELEBRATED DUTCHESS. BY THE AUTHOR OF THE DIABOLIAD. ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE. LONDON: Printed for J. Bew, No. 28, Paternoster-Row.
Chapter 1 of The first of April is here in full — 214 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/42 · 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.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading “BY THE AUTHOR OF THE DIABOLIAD.”
widely known and esteemed
From this reading “CELEBRATED DUTCHESS.”
an old form of “do”, used with “thou”
From this reading “---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.”
an old form of “have”, used with “thou”
From this reading “---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.”
a composition written in metrical feet forming rhythmical lines
From this reading “POEM.”
past form of “print” — put into print
From this reading “LONDON: Printed for J. Bew, No. 28, Paternoster-Row.”
English poet and dramatist considered one of the greatest English writers (1564-1616)
From this reading “---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.”
plural of “title” — a heading that names a statute or legislative bill; may give a brief summary of the matters it deals with
From this reading “---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.”
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 LONDON: Printed for J. Bew, No. 28, Paternoster-Row.
(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 ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading BY THE AUTHOR OF THE DIABOLIAD.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LONDON: Printed for J. Bew, No. 28, Paternoster-Row.
brought into existence
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
a youthful male person
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading BY THE AUTHOR OF THE DIABOLIAD.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
widely known and esteemed
From this reading CELEBRATED DUTCHESS.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BY THE AUTHOR OF THE DIABOLIAD.
an old form of “do”, used with “thou”
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading CELEBRATED DUTCHESS.
a person who lacks good judgment
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading LONDON: Printed for J. Bew, No. 28, Paternoster-Row.
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
an old form of “have”, used with “thou”
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
a unit of electrical energy equal to the work done when a current of one ampere passes through a resistance of one ohm for one second
From this reading LONDON: Printed for J. Bew, No. 28, Paternoster-Row.
the capital and largest city of England; located on the Thames in southeastern England; financial and industrial and cultural center
From this reading LONDON: Printed for J. Bew, No. 28, Paternoster-Row.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
not any; not one
From this reading LONDON: Printed for J. Bew, No. 28, Paternoster-Row.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading BY THE AUTHOR OF THE DIABOLIAD.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading LONDON: Printed for J. Bew, No. 28, Paternoster-Row.
a composition written in metrical feet forming rhythmical lines
From this reading POEM.
past form of “print” — put into print
From this reading LONDON: Printed for J. Bew, No. 28, Paternoster-Row.
English poet and dramatist considered one of the greatest English writers (1564-1616)
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading BY THE AUTHOR OF THE DIABOLIAD.
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
an old word for “your”, speaking to one person
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
plural of “title” — a heading that names a statute or legislative bill; may give a brief summary of the matters it deals with
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
in the company of; together with
From this reading ---- DOST THOU CALL ME FOOL, BOY?-- ALL THY OTHER TITLES THOU HAST GIVEN AWAY THAT THOU WAST BORN WITH!-- SHAKESPEARE.
Chapter 1 of The first of April by William Combe holds 214 sentences, grouped into 43 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 214 sentences of The first of April, unabridged, divided into 43 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The first of April by William Combe exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 214 sentences, grouped into 43 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 43 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 43 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 first of April by William Combe on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 214 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #18988 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #18988, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 17 minutes of reading across 43 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The first of April section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of The first of April 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 first of April, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
