Chapter 1 of The Humbugs of the World is here in full — 110 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Humbugs of the World is here in full — 110 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
HUMBUGS OF THE WORLD. AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES. P. T. BARNUM. "Omne ignotum pro mirifico."--"Wonderful, because mysterious." Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Chapter 1 of The Humbugs of the World is here in full — 110 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/22 · 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.
plural of “age” — how long something has existed
From this reading “AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.”
United States showman who popularized the circus (1810-1891)
From this reading “P. T. BARNUM.”
possessive form of “clerk” — an employee who performs clerical work (e.g., keeps records or accounts)
From this reading “Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.”
the legislature of the United States government
From this reading “Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.”
plural of “deceit” — the quality of being fraudulent
From this reading “AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.”
plural of “delusion” — (psychology) an erroneous belief that is held in the face of evidence to the contrary
From this reading “AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.”
a region marked off for administrative or other purposes
From this reading “Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.”
an athlete who plays for pay
From this reading “"Omne ignotum pro mirifico."--"Wonderful, because mysterious."”
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 “Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.”
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 Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
(followed by “to”) in agreement with or accordant with
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
a record or narrative description of past events
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
plural of “age” — how long something has existed
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
United States showman who popularized the circus (1810-1891)
From this reading P. T. BARNUM.
for the reason that
From this reading "Omne ignotum pro mirifico."--"Wonderful, because mysterious."
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
possessive form of “clerk” — an employee who performs clerical work (e.g., keeps records or accounts)
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
the legislature of the United States government
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
an assembly (including one or more judges) to conduct judicial business
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
plural of “deceit” — the quality of being fraudulent
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
plural of “delusion” — (psychology) an erroneous belief that is held in the face of evidence to the contrary
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
a region marked off for administrative or other purposes
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
usually; as a rule
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading HUMBUGS OF THE WORLD.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Omne ignotum pro mirifico."--"Wonderful, because mysterious."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Omne ignotum pro mirifico."--"Wonderful, because mysterious."
of an obscure nature
From this reading "Omne ignotum pro mirifico."--"Wonderful, because mysterious."
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading HUMBUGS OF THE WORLD.
place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Omne ignotum pro mirifico."--"Wonderful, because mysterious."
a multivalent nonmetallic element of the nitrogen family that occurs commonly in inorganic phosphate rocks and as organic phosphates in all living cells; is highly reactive and occurs in several allotropic forms
From this reading P. T. BARNUM.
an athlete who plays for pay
From this reading "Omne ignotum pro mirifico."--"Wonderful, because mysterious."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AN ACCOUNT OF HUMBUGS, DELUSIONS, IMPOSITIONS, QUACKERIES, DECEITS AND DECEIVERS GENERALLY, IN ALL AGES.
in or characteristic of a region of the United States south of (approximately) the Mason-Dixon line
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
a base found in DNA (but not in RNA) and derived from pyrimidine; pairs with adenine
From this reading P. T. BARNUM.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading HUMBUGS OF THE WORLD.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
extraordinarily good or great; used especially as intensifiers
From this reading "Omne ignotum pro mirifico."--"Wonderful, because mysterious."
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading HUMBUGS OF THE WORLD.
a period of time containing 365 (or 366) days
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
the English royal house (a branch of the Plantagenet line) that reigned from 1461 to 1485; its emblem was a white rose
From this reading Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Chapter 1 of The Humbugs of the World by P. T. (Phineas Taylor) Barnum holds 110 sentences, grouped into 22 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 110 sentences of The Humbugs of the World, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Humbugs of the World by P. T. (Phineas Taylor) Barnum exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 110 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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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Project Gutenberg eBook #26640, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 386 minutes of reading across 927 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in The Humbugs of the World, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
