Chapter 8 of The Grey Woman and other Tales is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Grey Woman and other Tales is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Oh!” she said, “that’s right. I have so hurried myself! I was afraid the fire would be out. Where’s Jenny? You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
Chapter 8 of The Grey Woman and other Tales is here in full — 390 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/78 · 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.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading “I was afraid the fire would be out.”
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading “You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.”
start firing a weapon
From this reading “I was afraid the fire would be out.”
moving rapidly or performed quickly or in great haste
From this reading “I have so hurried myself!”
United States architect who designed the first skyscraper in which a metal skeleton was used (1832-1907)
From this reading “Where’s Jenny?”
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading “I have so hurried myself!”
precisely, exactly
From this reading ““Oh!” she said, “that’s right.”
an educational institution
From this reading “You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.”
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.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading I was afraid the fire would be out.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading I was afraid the fire would be out.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
start firing a weapon
From this reading I was afraid the fire would be out.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I have so hurried myself!
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
moving rapidly or performed quickly or in great haste
From this reading I have so hurried myself!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I have so hurried myself!
United States architect who designed the first skyscraper in which a metal skeleton was used (1832-1907)
From this reading Where’s Jenny?
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading I have so hurried myself!
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading “Oh!” she said, “that’s right.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading I was afraid the fire would be out.
precisely, exactly
From this reading “Oh!” she said, “that’s right.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Oh!” she said, “that’s right.
an educational institution
From this reading You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Oh!” she said, “that’s right.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading I have so hurried myself!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Oh!” she said, “that’s right.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I was afraid the fire would be out.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was afraid the fire would be out.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Where’s Jenny?
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading I was afraid the fire would be out.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You were to have called for her, you know, as you came from school.
Chapter 8 of The Grey Woman and other Tales by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell holds 390 sentences, grouped into 78 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 8 holds 390 sentences of The Grey Woman and other Tales, unabridged, divided into 78 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Grey Woman and other Tales by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 390 sentences, grouped into 78 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 78 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 78 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 8 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 Grey Woman and other Tales by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3229 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #28636 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #28636, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 269 minutes of reading across 646 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Grey Woman and other Tales section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of The Grey Woman and other Tales 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 Grey Woman and other Tales, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
