Chapter 11 of The Grim Smile of the Five Towns is here in full — 433 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XI
Chapter 11 of The Grim Smile of the Five Towns is here in full — 433 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
'How do, missis?' Mr Brindley greeted her, and to his wife, 'How do, missis? But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours? None of 'em dead yet, I hope.' 'Don't be silly, Bob.'
Chapter 11 of The Grim Smile of the Five Towns is here in full — 433 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/86 · 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.
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading “'Don't be silly, Bob.'”
inflected form of “gad” — wander aimlessly in search of pleasure
From this reading “But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?”
past form of “greet” — express greetings upon meeting someone
From this reading “Mr Brindley greeted her, and to his wife, 'How do, missis?”
plural of “kid” — a young person of either sex
From this reading “But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?”
informal term of address for someone's wife
From this reading “'How do, missis?'”
characterized by feeling or showing fond affection for
From this reading “But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?”
ludicrous, foolish
From this reading “'Don't be silly, Bob.'”
(astronomy) a celestial body of hot gases that radiates energy derived from thermonuclear reactions in the interior
From this reading “But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Mr Brindley greeted her, and to his wife, 'How do, missis?
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading 'Don't be silly, Bob.'
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading 'Don't be silly, Bob.'
emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mr Brindley greeted her, and to his wife, 'How do, missis?
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading None of 'em dead yet, I hope.'
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading 'How do, missis?'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'Don't be silly, Bob.'
a quad with a square body
From this reading None of 'em dead yet, I hope.'
inflected form of “gad” — wander aimlessly in search of pleasure
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
past form of “greet” — express greetings upon meeting someone
From this reading Mr Brindley greeted her, and to his wife, 'How do, missis?
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Mr Brindley greeted her, and to his wife, 'How do, missis?
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Mr Brindley greeted her, and to his wife, 'How do, missis?
a specific instance of feeling hopeful
From this reading None of 'em dead yet, I hope.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'How do, missis?'
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading None of 'em dead yet, I hope.'
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
plural of “kid” — a young person of either sex
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
informal term of address for someone's wife
From this reading 'How do, missis?'
a form of address for a man
From this reading Mr Brindley greeted her, and to his wife, 'How do, missis?
not one, and not any
From this reading None of 'em dead yet, I hope.'
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
characterized by feeling or showing fond affection for
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
ludicrous, foolish
From this reading 'Don't be silly, Bob.'
(astronomy) a celestial body of hot gases that radiates energy derived from thermonuclear reactions in the interior
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Mr Brindley greeted her, and to his wife, 'How do, missis?
precisely as stated
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
used to ask for information about something
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading Mr Brindley greeted her, and to his wife, 'How do, missis?
but in spite of that
From this reading None of 'em dead yet, I hope.'
the one or ones belonging to the person spoken to
From this reading But, look here, bright star, this gadding about is all very well, but what about those precious kids of yours?
Chapter 11 of The Grim Smile of the Five Towns by Arnold Bennett holds 433 sentences, grouped into 87 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 11 holds 433 sentences of The Grim Smile of the Five Towns, unabridged, divided into 87 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of The Grim Smile of the Five Towns by Arnold Bennett exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 433 sentences, grouped into 87 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 87 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 87 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 11 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 Grim Smile of the Five Towns by Arnold Bennett on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4736 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #4734 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #4734, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 394 minutes of reading across 948 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Grim Smile of the Five Towns section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 11 chapters of The Grim Smile of the Five Towns 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 Grim Smile of the Five Towns, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
