Chapter 1 of The Forfeit is here in full — 344 sentences across 69 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Forfeit is here in full — 344 sentences across 69 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
They were busy days in Orrville. But business rarely yielded outward display in its citizens. Men talked more. They perhaps moved about more--in their customary leisurely fashion. But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
Chapter 1 of The Forfeit is here in full — 344 sentences across 69 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/68 · 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 rapid active commotion
From this reading “But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.”
a body of people who settle far from home but maintain ties with their homeland; inhabitants remain nationals of their home state but are not literally under the home state's system of government
From this reading “But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.”
in accordance with convention or custom
From this reading “They perhaps moved about more--in their customary leisurely fashion.”
(meteorology) rapid inward circulation of air masses about a low pressure center; circling counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern
From this reading “But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.”
in an unhurried way or at one's convenience
From this reading “They perhaps moved about more--in their customary leisurely fashion.”
relating to physical reality rather than with thoughts or the mind
From this reading “But business rarely yielded outward display in its citizens.”
plural of “snail” — freshwater or marine or terrestrial gastropod mollusk usually having an external enclosing spiral shell
From this reading “But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.”
an administrative division of a county
From this reading “But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.”
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 But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading They perhaps moved about more--in their customary leisurely fashion.
advanced in years; (“aged” is pronounced as two syllables)
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
move towards
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it
From this reading But business rarely yielded outward display in its citizens.
a rapid active commotion
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
actively or fully engaged or occupied
From this reading They were busy days in Orrville.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But business rarely yielded outward display in its citizens.
plural of “citizen” — a native or naturalized member of a state or other political community
From this reading But business rarely yielded outward display in its citizens.
a body of people who settle far from home but maintain ties with their homeland; inhabitants remain nationals of their home state but are not literally under the home state's system of government
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
in accordance with convention or custom
From this reading They perhaps moved about more--in their customary leisurely fashion.
(meteorology) rapid inward circulation of air masses about a low pressure center; circling counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
the time during which someone's life continues
From this reading They were busy days in Orrville.
something intended to communicate a particular impression
From this reading But business rarely yielded outward display in its citizens.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading They perhaps moved about more--in their customary leisurely fashion.
of concern to or concerning the affairs of other nations (other than your own)
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading They were busy days in Orrville.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading But business rarely yielded outward display in its citizens.
in an unhurried way or at one's convenience
From this reading They perhaps moved about more--in their customary leisurely fashion.
the force of workers available
From this reading Men talked more.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading Men talked more.
being excited or provoked to the expression of an emotion
From this reading They perhaps moved about more--in their customary leisurely fashion.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They were busy days in Orrville.
relating to physical reality rather than with thoughts or the mind
From this reading But business rarely yielded outward display in its citizens.
by chance
From this reading They perhaps moved about more--in their customary leisurely fashion.
not often
From this reading But business rarely yielded outward display in its citizens.
a principle or condition that customarily governs behavior
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
plural of “snail” — freshwater or marine or terrestrial gastropod mollusk usually having an external enclosing spiral shell
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
past form of “talk” — exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading Men talked more.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading They perhaps moved about more--in their customary leisurely fashion.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They were busy days in Orrville.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
an administrative division of a county
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading They were busy days in Orrville.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading But any approach to bustle was as foreign to the rule of the township as it would be to a colony of aged snails in a cyclone.
past form of “yield” — be the cause or source of
From this reading But business rarely yielded outward display in its citizens.
Chapter 1 of The Forfeit by Ridgwell Cullum holds 344 sentences, grouped into 69 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 344 sentences of The Forfeit, unabridged, divided into 69 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Forfeit by Ridgwell Cullum exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 344 sentences, grouped into 69 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 69 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 69 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.
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Yes. All 7964 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #19371 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #19371, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1593 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Forfeit section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of The Forfeit 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 Forfeit, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
