Chapter 1 of The Life and Death of Cormac the Skald is here in full — 188 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Life and Death of Cormac the Skald is here in full — 188 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga. Translation by W.G. Collingwood & J. Stefansson (Ulverston, 1901). CHAPTER ONE. Cormac's Fore-Elders. Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.
Chapter 1 of The Life and Death of Cormac the Skald is here in full — 188 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/37 · 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.
having a base
From this reading “Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.”
plural of “begin” — Israeli statesman (born in Russia) who (as prime minister of Israel) negotiated a peace treaty with Anwar Sadat (then the president of Egypt) (1913-1992)
From this reading “Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.”
a Scandinavian language that is the official language of Iceland
From this reading “Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.”
a constitutional monarchy in northern Europe on the western side of the Scandinavian Peninsula; achieved independence from Sweden in 1905
From this reading “Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.”
in an original manner
From this reading “Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.”
a narrative telling the adventures of a hero or a family; originally (12th to 14th centuries) a story of the families that settled Iceland and their descendants but now any prose narrative that resembles such an account
From this reading “Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.”
at some indefinite or unstated time
From this reading “Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.”
a written communication in a second language having the same meaning as the written communication in a first language
From this reading “Translation by W.G. Collingwood & J. Stefansson (Ulverston, 1901).”
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 Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Translation by W.G. Collingwood & J. Stefansson (Ulverston, 1901).
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
in spite of the fact that
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
having a base
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
plural of “begin” — Israeli statesman (born in Russia) who (as prime minister of Israel) negotiated a peace treaty with Anwar Sadat (then the president of Egypt) (1913-1992)
From this reading Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Translation by W.G. Collingwood & J. Stefansson (Ulverston, 1901).
a period of 100 years
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
a subdivision of a written work; usually numbered and titled
From this reading CHAPTER ONE.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Translation by W.G. Collingwood & J. Stefansson (Ulverston, 1901).
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cormac's Fore-Elders.
a fat-soluble vitamin that prevents rickets
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Cormac's Fore-Elders.
a metric unit of weight equal to one thousandth of a kilogram
From this reading Translation by W.G. Collingwood & J. Stefansson (Ulverston, 1901).
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.
a Scandinavian language that is the official language of Iceland
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
a unit of electrical energy equal to the work done when a current of one ampere passes through a resistance of one ohm for one second
From this reading Translation by W.G. Collingwood & J. Stefansson (Ulverston, 1901).
a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
a constitutional monarchy in northern Europe on the western side of the Scandinavian Peninsula; achieved independence from Sweden in 1905
From this reading Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading CHAPTER ONE.
in an original manner
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
the local environment
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
a narrative telling the adventures of a hero or a family; originally (12th to 14th centuries) a story of the families that settled Iceland and their descendants but now any prose narrative that resembles such an account
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
at some indefinite or unstated time
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Translation by W.G. Collingwood & J. Stefansson (Ulverston, 1901).
a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.
a written communication in a second language having the same meaning as the written communication in a first language
From this reading Translation by W.G. Collingwood & J. Stefansson (Ulverston, 1901).
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Translation by W.G. Collingwood & J. Stefansson (Ulverston, 1901).
a heavy grey-white metallic element; the pure form is used mainly in electrical applications; it is found in several ores including wolframite and scheelite
From this reading Translation by W.G. Collingwood & J. Stefansson (Ulverston, 1901).
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.
at the time that
From this reading Harald Fairhair was king of Norway when this tale begins.
set down in writing in any of various ways
From this reading Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250 - 1300 A.D. although parts may be based on a now lost 12th century saga.
Chapter 1 of The Life and Death of Cormac the Skald by W. G. (William Gershom) [Translator] Collingwood holds 188 sentences, grouped into 38 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 188 sentences of The Life and Death of Cormac the Skald, unabridged, divided into 38 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Life and Death of Cormac the Skald by W. G. (William Gershom) [Translator] Collingwood exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 188 sentences, grouped into 38 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 38 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 38 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 Life and Death of Cormac the Skald by W. G. (William Gershom) [Translator] Collingwood on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 960 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #265 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #265, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 80 minutes of reading across 192 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Life and Death of Cormac the Skald section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of The Life and Death of Cormac the Skald 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 Life and Death of Cormac the Skald, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
