Chapter 4 of The House of Delight is here in full — 158 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The House of Delight is here in full — 158 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MR. DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning. “She’s ’way inside of me,” said Betsey, dolefully. “So far I can’t find her.” “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
Chapter 4 of The House of Delight is here in full — 158 sentences across 32 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/31 · 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.
actively or fully engaged or occupied
From this reading “DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.”
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading ““What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.”
a group of animals (a herd or flock) moving together
From this reading ““What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.”
a windstorm that lifts up clouds of dust or sand
From this reading ““What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.”
past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading ““What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.”
in a playful manner
From this reading “DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.”
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading “DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.”
-ing form of “toss” — throw or toss with a light motion
From this reading ““What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
In this reading ““What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.”
In this reading “DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
actively or fully engaged or occupied
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “So far I can’t find her.”
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
a female human offspring
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
with sadness; in a sorrowful manner
From this reading “She’s ’way inside of me,” said Betsey, dolefully.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
a group of animals (a herd or flock) moving together
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
a windstorm that lifts up clouds of dust or sand
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading “So far I can’t find her.”
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading “So far I can’t find her.”
not easily irritated
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
enjoying or showing or marked by joy or pleasure
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “So far I can’t find her.”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “So far I can’t find her.”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
relating to or being on the side closer to the center or within a defined space
From this reading “She’s ’way inside of me,” said Betsey, dolefully.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “She’s ’way inside of me,” said Betsey, dolefully.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
a form of address for a man
From this reading MR.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “She’s ’way inside of me,” said Betsey, dolefully.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
in a playful manner
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “She’s ’way inside of me,” said Betsey, dolefully.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “She’s ’way inside of me,” said Betsey, dolefully.
(photography) the act of assuming a certain position (as for a photograph or portrait)
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “So far I can’t find her.”
bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
the astonishment you feel when something totally unexpected happens to you
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
-ing form of “toss” — throw or toss with a light motion
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading “She’s ’way inside of me,” said Betsey, dolefully.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “What drove her in?” inquired Mother, tossing away her duster and sitting down on the couch.
in or at the place that
From this reading DELIGHT’S SURPRISE “Where is my happy, sunny, good-tempered, busy little daughter Betsey?” asked Mother playfully, one morning.
Chapter 4 of The House of Delight by Gertrude Chandler Warner holds 158 sentences, grouped into 32 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 158 sentences of The House of Delight, unabridged, divided into 32 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The House of Delight by Gertrude Chandler Warner exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 158 sentences, grouped into 32 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 32 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 32 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.
Common questions about reading The House of Delight by Gertrude Chandler Warner on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 839 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #62714 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #62714, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 69 minutes of reading across 168 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The House of Delight section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of The House of Delight 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 House of Delight, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
