Chapter 12 of The humour of Holland is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of The humour of Holland is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows. _D’Eglantiers._ So he can’t write Flemish. (_To Maria._) Can you write, my girl? _Maria._ At your service, Captain. _D’Eglantiers._ That’s curious!
Chapter 12 of The humour of Holland is here in full — 410 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
an officer holding a rank below a major but above a lieutenant
From this reading “_Maria._ At your service, Captain.”
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading “_D’Eglantiers._ That’s curious!”
an ethnic group speaking Flemish and living in northern and western Belgium
From this reading “_Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.”
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading “_Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.”
a dark region of considerable extent on the surface of the moon
From this reading “(_To Maria._) Can you write, my girl?”
(ballet) a step in dancing (especially in classical ballet)
From this reading “_Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.”
work done by one person or group that benefits another
From this reading “_Maria._ At your service, Captain.”
produce a literary work
From this reading “_D’Eglantiers._ So he can’t write Flemish.”
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.
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.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading _Maria._ At your service, Captain.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading (_To Maria._) Can you write, my girl?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _D’Eglantiers._ So he can’t write Flemish.
an officer holding a rank below a major but above a lieutenant
From this reading _Maria._ At your service, Captain.
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading _D’Eglantiers._ That’s curious!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _D’Eglantiers._ So he can’t write Flemish.
an ethnic group speaking Flemish and living in northern and western Belgium
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
a young female
From this reading (_To Maria._) Can you write, my girl?
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading _D’Eglantiers._ So he can’t write Flemish.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
a dark region of considerable extent on the surface of the moon
From this reading (_To Maria._) Can you write, my girl?
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading (_To Maria._) Can you write, my girl?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
and nothing more
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
(ballet) a step in dancing (especially in classical ballet)
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
work done by one person or group that benefits another
From this reading _Maria._ At your service, Captain.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading _D’Eglantiers._ So he can’t write Flemish.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _D’Eglantiers._ That’s curious!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading (_To Maria._) Can you write, my girl?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading _Passereau._ _Je n’entends pas—verdikke!_ _Pluckx._ _Verdikke_ is the only word of Flemish that Passereau knows.
produce a literary work
From this reading _D’Eglantiers._ So he can’t write Flemish.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading (_To Maria._) Can you write, my girl?
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading _Maria._ At your service, Captain.
Chapter 12 of The humour of Holland by W. H. (Will H.) [Editor] Dircks holds 410 sentences, grouped into 82 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 12 holds 410 sentences of The humour of Holland, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of The humour of Holland by W. H. (Will H.) [Editor] Dircks exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 410 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 12 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 humour of Holland by W. H. (Will H.) [Editor] Dircks on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6954 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #64761 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #64761, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 579 minutes of reading across 1391 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The humour of Holland section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of The humour of Holland 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 humour of Holland, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
