Chapter 8 of The Helpmate is here in full — 388 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 Helpmate is here in full — 388 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
It was Anne's birthday. It shone in mid-May like the front of June. Anne's bedroom was over Edith's and looked out on the garden. A little rain had fallen over night. Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
Chapter 8 of The Helpmate is here in full — 388 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/77 · 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.
possessive form of “anne” — Queen of England and Scotland and Ireland; daughter if James II and the last of the Stuart monarchs; in 1707 she was the last English ruler to exercise the royal veto over parliament (1665-1714)
From this reading “It was Anne's birthday.”
a room used primarily for sleeping
From this reading “Anne's bedroom was over Edith's and looked out on the garden.”
an anniversary of the day on which a person was born (or the celebration of it)
From this reading “It was Anne's birthday.”
past form of “greet” — express greetings upon meeting someone
From this reading “Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.”
the month following May and preceding July
From this reading “It shone in mid-May like the front of June.”
water falling in drops from vapor condensed in the atmosphere
From this reading “A little rain had fallen over night.”
fully developed or matured and ready to be eaten or used
From this reading “Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.”
inflected form of “shine” — be bright by reflecting or casting light
From this reading “It shone in mid-May like the front of June.”
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 A little rain had fallen over night.
(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 Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Anne's bedroom was over Edith's and looked out on the garden.
possessive form of “anne” — Queen of England and Scotland and Ireland; daughter if James II and the last of the Stuart monarchs; in 1707 she was the last English ruler to exercise the royal veto over parliament (1665-1714)
From this reading It was Anne's birthday.
a room used primarily for sleeping
From this reading Anne's bedroom was over Edith's and looked out on the garden.
an anniversary of the day on which a person was born (or the celebration of it)
From this reading It was Anne's birthday.
the process of taking in and expelling air during breathing
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
the 3rd planet from the sun; the planet we live on
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Anne's bedroom was over Edith's and looked out on the garden.
having dropped by the force of gravity
From this reading A little rain had fallen over night.
plural of “flower” — a plant cultivated for its blooms or blossoms
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
the side that is forward or prominent
From this reading It shone in mid-May like the front of June.
a plot of ground where plants are cultivated
From this reading Anne's bedroom was over Edith's and looked out on the garden.
having the deep slightly brownish color of gold
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
past form of “greet” — express greetings upon meeting someone
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading A little rain had fallen over night.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It shone in mid-May like the front of June.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was Anne's birthday.
the month following May and preceding July
From this reading It shone in mid-May like the front of June.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading It shone in mid-May like the front of June.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading A little rain had fallen over night.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Anne's bedroom was over Edith's and looked out on the garden.
the middle part of May
From this reading It shone in mid-May like the front of June.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading A little rain had fallen over night.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It shone in mid-May like the front of June.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Anne's bedroom was over Edith's and looked out on the garden.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Anne's bedroom was over Edith's and looked out on the garden.
above and across; more than
From this reading Anne's bedroom was over Edith's and looked out on the garden.
water falling in drops from vapor condensed in the atmosphere
From this reading A little rain had fallen over night.
fully developed or matured and ready to be eaten or used
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
inflected form of “shine” — be bright by reflecting or casting light
From this reading It shone in mid-May like the front of June.
the region of the United States lying to the south of the Mason-Dixon line
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
having or denoting the characteristic taste of sugar
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It shone in mid-May like the front of June.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was Anne's birthday.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Through the open window the day greeted her with a breath of flowers and earth; a day that came to her all golden, ripe and sweet from the south.
Chapter 8 of The Helpmate by May Sinclair holds 388 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 388 sentences of The Helpmate, unabridged, divided into 78 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Helpmate by May Sinclair exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 388 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 Helpmate by May Sinclair on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9581 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #17867 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #17867, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1917 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Helpmate section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 38 chapters of The Helpmate 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 Helpmate, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
