Chapter 4 of The House of Dust: A Symphony is here in full — 646 sentences across 130 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 Dust: A Symphony is here in full — 646 sentences across 130 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of? Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these . . a photograph, a letter, Ribbon, or charm, or watch .
Chapter 4 of The House of Dust: A Symphony is here in full — 646 sentences across 130 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/129 · 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.
past form of “belong” — be owned by; be in the possession of
From this reading “I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?”
attractiveness that interests or pleases or stimulates
From this reading “. a photograph, a letter, Ribbon, or charm, or watch .”
perceiving things beyond the natural range of the senses
From this reading “I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?”
a flat (usually rectangular) container for a letter, thin package, etc.
From this reading “I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?”
(theater) the space over the stage (out of view of the audience) used to store scenery (drop curtains)
From this reading “Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .”
record on photographic film
From this reading “. a photograph, a letter, Ribbon, or charm, or watch .”
third-person singular of “remember” — recall knowledge from memory; have a recollection
From this reading “Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .”
any long object resembling a thin line
From this reading “. a photograph, a letter, Ribbon, or charm, or watch .”
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 photograph, a letter, Ribbon, or charm, or watch .
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
past form of “belong” — be owned by; be in the possession of
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
attractiveness that interests or pleases or stimulates
From this reading . a photograph, a letter, Ribbon, or charm, or watch .
perceiving things beyond the natural range of the senses
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
a flat (usually rectangular) container for a letter, thin package, etc.
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
(theater) the space over the stage (out of view of the audience) used to store scenery (drop curtains)
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
having or displaying warmth or affection
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading . a photograph, a letter, Ribbon, or charm, or watch .
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
on one occasion
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
and nothing more
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
record on photographic film
From this reading . a photograph, a letter, Ribbon, or charm, or watch .
third-person singular of “remember” — recall knowledge from memory; have a recollection
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
any long object resembling a thin line
From this reading . a photograph, a letter, Ribbon, or charm, or watch .
express in words
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
a thing, without saying which
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
a male human offspring
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
the immaterial part of a person; the actuating cause of an individual life
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
look attentively
From this reading . a photograph, a letter, Ribbon, or charm, or watch .
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading Something he remembers?-- The soul flies far, and we can only call it By things like these .
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I. CLAIRVOYANT 'This envelope you say has something in it Which once belonged to your dead son--or something He knew, was fond of?
Chapter 4 of The House of Dust: A Symphony by Conrad Aiken holds 646 sentences, grouped into 130 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 4 holds 646 sentences of The House of Dust: A Symphony, unabridged, divided into 130 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The House of Dust: A Symphony by Conrad Aiken exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 646 sentences, grouped into 130 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 130 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 130 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 Dust: A Symphony by Conrad Aiken on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2235 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1246 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1246, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 186 minutes of reading across 447 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The House of Dust: A Symphony section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of The House of Dust: A Symphony 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 Dust: A Symphony, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
