Chapter 17 of The Gentleman: A Romance of the Sea is here in full — 251 sentences across 51 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of The Gentleman: A Romance of the Sea is here in full — 251 sentences across 51 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE FIGHTING MAN He clapped on his hat. "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper." The boy looked up shyly. "Could I have something to eat first, sir? I haven't tasted food for twenty-four hours."
Chapter 17 of The Gentleman: A Romance of the Sea is here in full — 251 sentences across 51 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/50 · 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.
inflected form of “clap” — put quickly or forcibly
From this reading “THE FIGHTING MAN He clapped on his hat.”
a body serving in an administrative capacity
From this reading “"And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."”
the act of fighting; any contest or struggle
From this reading “THE FIGHTING MAN He clapped on his hat.”
any substance that can be metabolized by an animal to give energy and build tissue
From this reading “I haven't tasted food for twenty-four hours."”
someone who plays the bagpipe
From this reading “"And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."”
in a shy or timid or bashful manner
From this reading “The boy looked up shyly.”
past form of “taste” — have flavor; taste of something
From this reading “I haven't tasted food for twenty-four hours."”
being four more than twenty
From this reading “I haven't tasted food for twenty-four hours."”
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 "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
a youthful male person
From this reading The boy looked up shyly.
inflected form of “clap” — put quickly or forcibly
From this reading THE FIGHTING MAN He clapped on his hat.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading "Could I have something to eat first, sir?
a body serving in an administrative capacity
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
take in solid food
From this reading "Could I have something to eat first, sir?
the act of fighting; any contest or struggle
From this reading THE FIGHTING MAN He clapped on his hat.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
any substance that can be metabolized by an animal to give energy and build tissue
From this reading I haven't tasted food for twenty-four hours."
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading I haven't tasted food for twenty-four hours."
headdress that protects the head from bad weather; has shaped crown and usually a brim
From this reading THE FIGHTING MAN He clapped on his hat.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Could I have something to eat first, sir?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I haven't tasted food for twenty-four hours."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading THE FIGHTING MAN He clapped on his hat.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading THE FIGHTING MAN He clapped on his hat.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
a period of time assigned for work
From this reading I haven't tasted food for twenty-four hours."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Could I have something to eat first, sir?
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading The boy looked up shyly.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading THE FIGHTING MAN He clapped on his hat.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading THE FIGHTING MAN He clapped on his hat.
someone who plays the bagpipe
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
in a shy or timid or bashful manner
From this reading The boy looked up shyly.
term of address for a man
From this reading "Could I have something to eat first, sir?
a thing, without saying which
From this reading "Could I have something to eat first, sir?
past form of “taste” — have flavor; taste of something
From this reading I haven't tasted food for twenty-four hours."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE FIGHTING MAN He clapped on his hat.
a special situation
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
being four more than twenty
From this reading I haven't tasted food for twenty-four hours."
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading The boy looked up shyly.
the waging of armed conflict against an enemy
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
in the company of; together with
From this reading "And now the first thing to be done is to hold a Council of War with old Piper."
Chapter 17 of The Gentleman: A Romance of the Sea by Alfred Ollivant holds 251 sentences, grouped into 51 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 17 holds 251 sentences of The Gentleman: A Romance of the Sea, unabridged, divided into 51 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of The Gentleman: A Romance of the Sea by Alfred Ollivant exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 251 sentences, grouped into 51 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 51 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 51 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 17 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 Gentleman: A Romance of the Sea by Alfred Ollivant on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8871 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #8396 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #8396, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1775 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Gentleman: A Romance of the Sea section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Gentleman: A Romance of the Sea 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 Gentleman: A Romance of the Sea, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
