Chapter 1 of The Importance of is here in full — 299 sentences across 60 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Importance of is here in full — 299 sentences across 60 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
JACK. Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once. There is no time to be lost. GWENDOLEN. Married, Mr. Worthing?
Chapter 1 of The Importance of is here in full — 299 sentences across 60 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/59 · 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.
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 Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is no time to be lost.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is no time to be lost.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading JACK.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is no time to be lost.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Married, Mr. Worthing?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is no time to be lost.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is no time to be lost.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is no time to be lost.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There is no time to be lost.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Married, Mr. Worthing?
Chapter 1 of The Importance of by Oscar Wilde holds 299 sentences, grouped into 60 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 1 holds 299 sentences of The Importance of, unabridged, divided into 60 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Importance of by Oscar Wilde exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 299 sentences, grouped into 60 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 60 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 60 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.
Common questions about reading The Importance of by Oscar Wilde on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1822 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #844 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #844, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 151 minutes of reading across 365 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Importance of section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of The Importance of 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 Importance of, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
