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The Greatest Plague of Life
The Greatest Plague of Life

Chapter IX

Chapter 9 of The Greatest Plague of Life is here in full — 181 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

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Context Illustration Reading 1/36 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
WHICH TREATS OF MRS.
YAPP, MRS.
B--FF--N, MRS.
TOOSYPEGS, LITTLE MISS SK--N--ST--N, AND FLY-AWAY MISS SUSAN.
“It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

The Greatest Plague of Life

Chapter IX

Chapter 9 of The Greatest Plague of Life is here in full — 181 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/36 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
WHICH TREATS OF MRS.
/wɪtʃ triːts ʌv ˈmɪsɪz/
Line 2
YAPP, MRS.
Line 3
B--FF--N, MRS.
Line 4
TOOSYPEGS, LITTLE MISS SK--N--ST--N, AND FLY-AWAY MISS SUSAN.
Line 5
“It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”
/ɪt wɑːz wʌn ˈwɪntərz deɪ əˈbaʊt sɪks ɪn ðə mɔːrn wen maɪ ˈlɪtəl ˈɪnəsənt ˈkriːtʃər wɑːz bɔːrn ðer wɜːr ˈdɑːktər ənd nɜːrs ənd ə ɡreɪt ˈmeni mɔːr bʌt nʌn ʌv ðem sɔː sʌtʃ ə ˈbeɪbi bɪˈfɔːr/

Learner Dictionary

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.

baby noun US /ˈbeɪbi/

a very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk

From this reading ““It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.””

born adjective US /bɔːrn/

brought into existence

From this reading ““It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.””

creature noun US /ˈkriːtʃər/

a living organism characterized by voluntary movement

From this reading ““It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.””

innocent adjective US /ˈɪnəsənt/

free from evil or guilt

From this reading ““It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.””

morn noun US /mɔːrn/

the time period between dawn and noon

From this reading ““It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.””

nurse verb US /nɜːrs/

try to cure by special care of treatment, of an illness or injury

From this reading ““It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.””

treats noun US /triːts/

plural of “treat” — something considered choice to eat

From this reading “WHICH TREATS OF MRS.”

winter's noun US /ˈwɪntərz/

possessive form of “winter” — the coldest season of the year; in the northern hemisphere it extends from the winter solstice to the vernal equinox

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

innocent creature adjective + noun

In this reading ““It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.””

about six preposition + noun

In this reading ““It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.””

All words in this reading · 46

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

aboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/

on the subject of; concerning

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

ANDconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading TOOSYPEGS, LITTLE MISS SK--N--ST--N, AND FLY-AWAY MISS SUSAN.

BnounUS /biː/

aerobic rod-shaped spore-producing bacterium; often occurring in chainlike formations; found primarily in soil

From this reading B--FF--N, MRS.

babynounUS /ˈbeɪbi/

a very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

bornadjectiveUS /bɔːrn/

brought into existence

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

ButconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

creaturenounUS /ˈkriːtʃər/

a living organism characterized by voluntary movement

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

daynounUS /deɪ/

time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

doctornounUS /ˈdɑːktər/

a licensed medical practitioner

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

FF

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading B--FF--N, MRS.

FLY-AWAY

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading TOOSYPEGS, LITTLE MISS SK--N--ST--N, AND FLY-AWAY MISS SUSAN.

greatadjectiveUS /ɡreɪt/

relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

innocentadjectiveUS /ˈɪnəsənt/

free from evil or guilt

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

LITTLEadjectiveUS /ˈlɪtəl/

limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent

From this reading TOOSYPEGS, LITTLE MISS SK--N--ST--N, AND FLY-AWAY MISS SUSAN.

manyadjectiveUS /ˈmeni/

a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “as” or “too” or “so” or “that”; amounting to a large but indefinite number

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

MISSverbUS /mɪs/

fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind

From this reading TOOSYPEGS, LITTLE MISS SK--N--ST--N, AND FLY-AWAY MISS SUSAN.

moreadjectiveUS /mɔːr/

(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

mornnounUS /mɔːrn/

the time period between dawn and noon

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

MRSnounUS /ˈmɪsɪz/

a form of address for a married woman

From this reading WHICH TREATS OF MRS.

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

NnounUS /en/

a common nonmetallic element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless inert diatomic gas; constitutes 78 percent of the atmosphere by volume; a constituent of all living tissues

From this reading B--FF--N, MRS.

nonepronounUS /nʌn/

not one, and not any

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

nurseverbUS /nɜːrs/

try to cure by special care of treatment, of an illness or injury

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

OFprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading WHICH TREATS OF MRS.

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

sawverbUS /sɔː/

cut with a saw

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

sixnounUS /sɪks/

the cardinal number that is the sum of five and one

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

SK

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading TOOSYPEGS, LITTLE MISS SK--N--ST--N, AND FLY-AWAY MISS SUSAN.

ST

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading TOOSYPEGS, LITTLE MISS SK--N--ST--N, AND FLY-AWAY MISS SUSAN.

suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/

of the kind already mentioned

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

SUSAN

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading TOOSYPEGS, LITTLE MISS SK--N--ST--N, AND FLY-AWAY MISS SUSAN.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

thempronounUS /ðem/

the people or things already mentioned, as the object

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

ThereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

TOOSYPEGS

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading TOOSYPEGS, LITTLE MISS SK--N--ST--N, AND FLY-AWAY MISS SUSAN.

TREATSnounUS /triːts/

plural of “treat” — something considered choice to eat

From this reading WHICH TREATS OF MRS.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

WhenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

WHICHpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading WHICH TREATS OF MRS.

winter'snounUS /ˈwɪntərz/

possessive form of “winter” — the coldest season of the year; in the northern hemisphere it extends from the winter solstice to the vernal equinox

From this reading “It was one winter’s day, about six in the morn, When my little innocent creature was born; There were doctor, and nurse, and a great many more, But none of them saw such a baby before.”

YAPP

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading YAPP, MRS.

Chapter 9 of The Greatest Plague of Life by Augustus Mayhew holds 181 sentences, grouped into 37 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.

What does chapter 9 of The Greatest Plague of Life contain?

Chapter 9 holds 181 sentences of The Greatest Plague of Life, unabridged, divided into 37 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 9 of The Greatest Plague of Life by Augustus Mayhew exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 181 sentences, grouped into 37 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.

How do I study chapter 9 of The Greatest Plague of Life?

Work through the 37 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 37 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.

Can chapter 9 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 9 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.

Questions about reading The Greatest Plague of Life

Common questions about reading The Greatest Plague of Life by Augustus Mayhew on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of The Greatest Plague of Life?

Yes. All 2503 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #60562 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of The Greatest Plague of Life is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #60562, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does The Greatest Plague of Life take to read?

About 208 minutes of reading across 501 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read The Greatest Plague of Life section by section

How to work through The Greatest Plague of Life section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 17 chapters of The Greatest Plague of Life to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in The Greatest Plague of Life

Words and structures a reader meets early in The Greatest Plague of Life, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Search
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Greatest Plague of Life; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Servant
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Greatest Plague of Life; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Almost
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Greatest Plague of Life; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Worried
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Greatest Plague of Life; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.