Chapter 3 of The Lesson of the Master is here in full — 211 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Lesson of the Master is here in full — 211 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“How do you know that?” “I think you should know how I know it,” the young man laughed. “I suppose Miss Fancourt told you.” “No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.” “Yes—that’s much more what she’d do.
Chapter 3 of The Lesson of the Master is here in full — 211 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/42 · 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.
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading ““No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.””
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading ““I think you should know how I know it,” the young man laughed.”
diode such that light emitted at a p-n junction is proportional to the bias current; color depends on the material used
From this reading ““No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.””
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading ““I suppose Miss Fancourt told you.””
on the contrary
From this reading ““No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.””
express a supposition
From this reading ““I suppose Miss Fancourt told you.””
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading ““I suppose Miss Fancourt told you.””
an affirmative
From this reading ““Yes—that’s much more what she’d do.”
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 to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “How do you know that?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I suppose Miss Fancourt told you.”
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading “No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “How do you know that?”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I think you should know how I know it,” the young man laughed.
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading “No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “I think you should know how I know it,” the young man laughed.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “How do you know that?”
past form of “laugh” — produce laughter
From this reading “I think you should know how I know it,” the young man laughed.
diode such that light emitted at a p-n junction is proportional to the bias current; color depends on the material used
From this reading “No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.”
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading “I think you should know how I know it,” the young man laughed.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.”
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading “I suppose Miss Fancourt told you.”
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading “Yes—that’s much more what she’d do.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading “Yes—that’s much more what she’d do.
not any; not one
From this reading “No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.”
on the contrary
From this reading “No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.”
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Yes—that’s much more what she’d do.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading “I think you should know how I know it,” the young man laughed.
express a supposition
From this reading “I suppose Miss Fancourt told you.”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “How do you know that?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Yes—that’s much more what she’d do.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “I think you should know how I know it,” the young man laughed.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading “I think you should know how I know it,” the young man laughed.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “No indeed—she led me rather to suppose you had.”
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading “I suppose Miss Fancourt told you.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “Yes—that’s much more what she’d do.
an affirmative
From this reading “Yes—that’s much more what she’d do.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “How do you know that?”
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading “I think you should know how I know it,” the young man laughed.
Chapter 3 of The Lesson of the Master by Henry James holds 211 sentences, grouped into 43 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 3 holds 211 sentences of The Lesson of the Master, unabridged, divided into 43 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Lesson of the Master by Henry James exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 211 sentences, grouped into 43 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 43 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 43 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 3 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 Lesson of the Master by Henry James on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1488 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #898 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #898, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 124 minutes of reading across 298 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Lesson of the Master section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of The Lesson of the Master 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 Lesson of the Master, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
