Chapter 25 of The Legacy of Cain is here in full — 257 sentences across 52 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXV
Chapter 25 of The Legacy of Cain is here in full — 257 sentences across 52 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I opened the door. Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light. When I turned toward the bed, her arms were round her father’s neck. “Oh, poor papa, how ill you look!” Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
Chapter 25 of The Legacy of Cain is here in full — 257 sentences across 52 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/51 · 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.
attractiveness that interests or pleases or stimulates
From this reading “Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.”
completely ordinary and unremarkable
From this reading “Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.”
plural of “expression” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading “Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.”
gleam or glow intermittently
From this reading “Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.”
a predisposition to like something
From this reading “Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.”
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading ““Oh, poor papa, how ill you look!””
in a softened tone
From this reading “Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.”
the quality of happening with headlong haste or without warning
From this reading “Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.”
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 Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
weapons considered collectively
From this reading When I turned toward the bed, her arms were round her father’s neck.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading When I turned toward the bed, her arms were round her father’s neck.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
attractiveness that interests or pleases or stimulates
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
completely ordinary and unremarkable
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading I opened the door.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.
plural of “expression” — the feelings expressed on a person's face
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
possessive form of “father” — a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading When I turned toward the bed, her arms were round her father’s neck.
gleam or glow intermittently
From this reading Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.
a predisposition to like something
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading When I turned toward the bed, her arms were round her father’s neck.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Oh, poor papa, how ill you look!”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I opened the door.
affected by an impairment of normal physical or mental function
From this reading “Oh, poor papa, how ill you look!”
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading “Oh, poor papa, how ill you look!”
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
the part of an organism (human or animal) that connects the head to the rest of the body
From this reading When I turned toward the bed, her arms were round her father’s neck.
not any; not one
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading “Oh, poor papa, how ill you look!”
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading I opened the door.
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading “Oh, poor papa, how ill you look!”
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading “Oh, poor papa, how ill you look!”
a charge of ammunition for a single shot
From this reading When I turned toward the bed, her arms were round her father’s neck.
in a softened tone
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
the quality of happening with headlong haste or without warning
From this reading Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I opened the door.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
the quality of a person's voice
From this reading Commonplace expressions of fondness, and no more; but the tone gave them a charm that subdued me.
in the direction of
From this reading When I turned toward the bed, her arms were round her father’s neck.
moved around an axis or center
From this reading When I turned toward the bed, her arms were round her father’s neck.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading When I turned toward the bed, her arms were round her father’s neck.
at the time that
From this reading When I turned toward the bed, her arms were round her father’s neck.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Eunice passed me with the suddenness almost of a flash of light.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Oh, poor papa, how ill you look!”
Chapter 25 of The Legacy of Cain by Wilkie Collins holds 257 sentences, grouped into 52 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 25 holds 257 sentences of The Legacy of Cain, unabridged, divided into 52 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 25 of The Legacy of Cain by Wilkie Collins exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 257 sentences, grouped into 52 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 52 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 52 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 25 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 Legacy of Cain by Wilkie Collins on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8449 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1975 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1975, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1690 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Legacy of Cain section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Legacy of Cain 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 Legacy of Cain, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
