Chapter 4 of The Hesperides & Noble Numbers: Vol. 1 and 2 is here in full — 366 sentences across 74 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Hesperides & Noble Numbers: Vol. 1 and 2 is here in full — 366 sentences across 74 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best. Still thou reply'st: The dead. I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me. 175. JULIA'S PETTICOAT.
Chapter 4 of The Hesperides & Noble Numbers: Vol. 1 and 2 is here in full — 366 sentences across 74 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/73 · 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.
a feeling of grudging admiration and desire to have something that is possessed by another
From this reading “I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.”
an old word for “before”
From this reading “I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.”
green color or pigment; resembling the color of growing grass
From this reading “I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.”
an old form of “have”, used with “thou”
From this reading “I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.”
many times at short intervals
From this reading “I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.”
undergarment worn under a skirt
From this reading “JULIA'S PETTICOAT.”
plural of “poet” — a writer of poems (the term is usually reserved for writers of good poetry)
From this reading “I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.”
an old form of “will”, used with “thou”
From this reading “I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 175.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
the supreme effort one can make
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading Still thou reply'st: The dead.
a feeling of grudging admiration and desire to have something that is possessed by another
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
an old word for “before”
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
green color or pigment; resembling the color of growing grass
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
an old form of “have”, used with “thou”
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading JULIA'S PETTICOAT.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
many times at short intervals
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
undergarment worn under a skirt
From this reading JULIA'S PETTICOAT.
plural of “poet” — a writer of poems (the term is usually reserved for writers of good poetry)
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
interpret something that is written or printed
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Still thou reply'st: The dead.
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
not in physical motion
From this reading Still thou reply'st: The dead.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
an old word for “you”, as the object, speaking to one person
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading I ask'd thee oft what poets thou hast read, And lik'st the best.
an old form of “will”, used with “thou”
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
in the company of; together with
From this reading I shall, ere long, with green turfs cover'd be; Then sure thou'lt like or thou wilt envy me.
Chapter 4 of The Hesperides & Noble Numbers: Vol. 1 and 2 by Robert Herrick holds 366 sentences, grouped into 74 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 4 holds 366 sentences of The Hesperides & Noble Numbers: Vol. 1 and 2, unabridged, divided into 74 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Hesperides & Noble Numbers: Vol. 1 and 2 by Robert Herrick exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 366 sentences, grouped into 74 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 74 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 74 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 4 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.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #22421, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2401 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Hesperides & Noble Numbers: Vol. 1 and 2 section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 35 chapters of The Hesperides & Noble Numbers: Vol. 1 and 2 to begin.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in The Hesperides & Noble Numbers: Vol. 1 and 2, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
