Chapter 1 of The Hill: A Romance of Friendship is here in full — 523 sentences across 105 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Hill: A Romance of Friendship is here in full — 523 sentences across 105 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it. "What cheek!" murmured Scaife. "Eh?" said John. "Dirty Dick isn't here. Just like him, the slacker!
Chapter 1 of The Hill: A Romance of Friendship is here in full — 523 sentences across 105 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 75/104 · 5 reading units · Lines 371–375
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 manservant (usually the head servant of a household) who has charge of wines and the table
From this reading “The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.”
either side of the face below the eyes
From this reading “"What cheek!" murmured Scaife.”
someone who is a detective
From this reading “"Dirty Dick isn't here.”
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading “"Dirty Dick isn't here.”
past form of “murmur” — speak softly or indistinctly
From this reading “"What cheek!" murmured Scaife.”
any broad thin expanse or surface
From this reading “The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.”
a person who shirks his work or duty (especially one who tries to evade military service in wartime)
From this reading “Just like him, the slacker!”
the starting point for a new state or experience
From this reading “The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.”
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 The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
a manservant (usually the head servant of a household) who has charge of wines and the table
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
either side of the face below the eyes
From this reading "What cheek!" murmured Scaife.
someone who is a detective
From this reading "Dirty Dick isn't here.
soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime
From this reading "Dirty Dick isn't here.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Eh?" said John.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "Dirty Dick isn't here.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Just like him, the slacker!
the act of retaining something
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Dirty Dick isn't here.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading "Eh?" said John.
and nothing more
From this reading Just like him, the slacker!
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Just like him, the slacker!
past form of “murmur” — speak softly or indistinctly
From this reading "What cheek!" murmured Scaife.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
a material made of cellulose pulp derived mainly from wood or rags or certain grasses
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Eh?" said John.
a tray (or large plate) for serving food or drinks; usually made of silver
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What cheek!" murmured Scaife.
any broad thin expanse or surface
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
a soft white precious univalent metallic element having the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal; occurs in argentite and in free form; used in coins and jewelry and tableware and photography
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
a person who shirks his work or duty (especially one who tries to evade military service in wartime)
From this reading Just like him, the slacker!
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
the starting point for a new state or experience
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "What cheek!" murmured Scaife.
in the company of; together with
From this reading The boys passed through one door; upon the threshold of the other stood the butler, holding a silver salver, with a sheet of paper on it.
Chapter 1 of The Hill: A Romance of Friendship by Horace Annesley Vachell holds 523 sentences, grouped into 105 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 1 holds 523 sentences of The Hill: A Romance of Friendship, unabridged, divided into 105 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Hill: A Romance of Friendship by Horace Annesley Vachell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 523 sentences, grouped into 105 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 105 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 105 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 1 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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Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
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How to work through The Hill: A Romance of Friendship section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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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 Hill: A Romance of Friendship, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
