Chapter 1 of The Flower of the Flock, Volume 1 (of 3) is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Flower of the Flock, Volume 1 (of 3) is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
And the sunlight clasps the earth. --Shelley. From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies; And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies. A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
Chapter 1 of The Flower of the Flock, Volume 1 (of 3) is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
diurnal birds of prey having long pointed powerful wings adapted for swift flight
From this reading “From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;”
more quickly
From this reading “From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;”
worried and uneasy
From this reading “A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.”
English writer who created Frankenstein's monster and married Percy Bysshe Shelley (1797-1851)
From this reading “--Shelley.”
plural of “sky” — the atmosphere and outer space as viewed from the earth
From this reading “And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.”
plural of “spy” — (military) a secret agent hired by a state to obtain information about its enemies or by a business to obtain industrial secrets from competitors
From this reading “From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;”
the rays of the sun
From this reading “And the sunlight clasps the earth.”
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading “A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.”
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 bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.”
In this reading “From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;”
In this reading “A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.”
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 bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And the sunlight clasps the earth.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
the qualities that give pleasure to the senses
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
for the reason that
From this reading And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.
emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
From this reading A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
actively or fully engaged or occupied
From this reading A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
a natural or artificial enclosed space
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And the sunlight clasps the earth.
unvarying in nature
From this reading And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.
the 3rd planet from the sun; the planet we live on
From this reading And the sunlight clasps the earth.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.
diurnal birds of prey having long pointed powerful wings adapted for swift flight
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
more quickly
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
the month following May and preceding July
From this reading A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
the capital and largest city of England; located on the Thames in southeastern England; financial and industrial and cultural center
From this reading A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
worried and uneasy
From this reading A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
Identical; not different.
From this reading And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.
English writer who created Frankenstein's monster and married Percy Bysshe Shelley (1797-1851)
From this reading --Shelley.
plural of “sky” — the atmosphere and outer space as viewed from the earth
From this reading And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.
plural of “spy” — (military) a secret agent hired by a state to obtain information about its enemies or by a business to obtain industrial secrets from competitors
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
the rays of the sun
From this reading And the sunlight clasps the earth.
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading A bright sunny morning, at the end of June, in busy, restless London.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading And the sunlight clasps the earth.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.
the sixth of the seven canonical hours of the divine office; early evening; now often made a public service on Sundays
From this reading And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.
look attentively
From this reading And constant as her vespers would he watch, Because her face was turned to the same skies.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading From her chamber window he would catch Her beauty faster than the falcon spies;
Chapter 1 of The Flower of the Flock, Volume 1 (of 3) by Pierce Egan holds 196 sentences, grouped into 40 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 196 sentences of The Flower of the Flock, Volume 1 (of 3), unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Flower of the Flock, Volume 1 (of 3) by Pierce Egan exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 196 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 Flower of the Flock, Volume 1 (of 3) by Pierce Egan on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3414 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56371 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56371, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 284 minutes of reading across 683 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Flower of the Flock, Volume 1 (of 3) section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 16 chapters of The Flower of the Flock, Volume 1 (of 3) 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 Flower of the Flock, Volume 1 (of 3), each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
