Chapter 4 of The Imported Bridegroom, and Other Stories of the New York Ghetto is here in full — 464 sentences across 93 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Imported Bridegroom, and Other Stories of the New York Ghetto is here in full — 464 sentences across 93 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"An appikoros my son? An appikoros my Kaddish? No," he rejoined, shaking his head pensively. As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him. He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.
Chapter 4 of The Imported Bridegroom, and Other Stories of the New York Ghetto is here in full — 464 sentences across 93 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/92 · 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 lowermost portion of a structure partly or wholly below ground level; often used for storage
From this reading “He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.”
past form of “descend” — move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way
From this reading “He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.”
all the plant life in a particular region or period
From this reading “As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.”
unbiased impartial unconcern
From this reading “He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.”
subject to death
From this reading “He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.”
past form of “rejoin” — join again
From this reading “No," he rejoined, shaking his head pensively.”
the act of causing something to move up and down (or back and forth) with quick movements
From this reading “No," he rejoined, shaking his head pensively.”
anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading “As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.”
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 “He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.”
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 As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading "An appikoros my son?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "An appikoros my son?
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
the lowermost portion of a structure partly or wholly below ground level; often used for storage
From this reading He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.
past form of “descend” — move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way
From this reading He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
all the plant life in a particular region or period
From this reading As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading No," he rejoined, shaking his head pensively.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading No," he rejoined, shaking his head pensively.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading No," he rejoined, shaking his head pensively.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.
unbiased impartial unconcern
From this reading He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading An appikoros my Kaddish?
subject to death
From this reading He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "An appikoros my son?
not any; not one
From this reading No," he rejoined, shaking his head pensively.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.
in a pensive manner
From this reading No," he rejoined, shaking his head pensively.
past form of “rejoin” — join again
From this reading No," he rejoined, shaking his head pensively.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
the act of causing something to move up and down (or back and forth) with quick movements
From this reading No," he rejoined, shaking his head pensively.
a male human offspring
From this reading "An appikoros my son?
the territory occupied by one of the constituent administrative districts of a nation
From this reading He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.
anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He descended to the basement in a state of mortal indifference.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading As he said it he felt as if Flora, too, were a stranger to him.
Chapter 4 of The Imported Bridegroom, and Other Stories of the New York Ghetto by Abraham Cahan holds 464 sentences, grouped into 93 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 4 holds 464 sentences of The Imported Bridegroom, and Other Stories of the New York Ghetto, unabridged, divided into 93 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Imported Bridegroom, and Other Stories of the New York Ghetto by Abraham Cahan exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 464 sentences, grouped into 93 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 93 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 93 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 Imported Bridegroom, and Other Stories of the New York Ghetto by Abraham Cahan on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2698 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #43028 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #43028, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 224 minutes of reading across 540 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Imported Bridegroom, and Other Stories of the New York Ghetto section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of The Imported Bridegroom, and Other Stories of the New York Ghetto 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 Imported Bridegroom, and Other Stories of the New York Ghetto, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
