Chapter 7 of The House of Souls is here in full — 394 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VII
Chapter 7 of The House of Souls is here in full — 394 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.' 'You don't say so? Have you ever seen his wife?' 'No, I haven't. I have lost sight of Herbert for many years.'
Chapter 7 of The House of Souls is here in full — 394 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/78 · 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.
the body of faculty and students of a college
From this reading “'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'”
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading “'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'”
United States musician and composer and conductor noted for his comic operas (1859-1924)
From this reading “I have lost sight of Herbert for many years.'”
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading “I have lost sight of Herbert for many years.'”
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'”
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading “'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'”
an instance of visual perception
From this reading “I have lost sight of Herbert for many years.'”
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading “Have you ever seen his wife?'”
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.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading 'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'
the body of faculty and students of a college
From this reading 'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'You don't say so?
at any time
From this reading Have you ever seen his wife?'
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading I have lost sight of Herbert for many years.'
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading 'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Have you ever seen his wife?'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'No, I haven't.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading 'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'
United States musician and composer and conductor noted for his comic operas (1859-1924)
From this reading I have lost sight of Herbert for many years.'
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Have you ever seen his wife?'
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading 'No, I haven't.
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading I have lost sight of Herbert for many years.'
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “as” or “too” or “so” or “that”; amounting to a large but indefinite number
From this reading I have lost sight of Herbert for many years.'
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading 'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'
not any; not one
From this reading 'No, I haven't.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading 'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading 'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading 'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'
express in words
From this reading 'You don't say so?
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Have you ever seen his wife?'
an instance of visual perception
From this reading I have lost sight of Herbert for many years.'
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading 'You don't say so?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading 'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading 'Well,' replied Villiers, 'he was an old college friend of mine.'
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading Have you ever seen his wife?'
a late time of life
From this reading I have lost sight of Herbert for many years.'
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading 'You don't say so?
Chapter 7 of The House of Souls by Arthur Machen holds 394 sentences, grouped into 79 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 7 holds 394 sentences of The House of Souls, unabridged, divided into 79 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 7 of The House of Souls by Arthur Machen exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 394 sentences, grouped into 79 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 79 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 79 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 7 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 Souls by Arthur Machen on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3621 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #25016 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #25016, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 301 minutes of reading across 725 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The House of Souls section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of The House of Souls 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 Souls, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
