Chapter 1 of The Life of John Clare is here in full — 429 sentences across 86 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 of John Clare is here in full — 429 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE LIFE OF JOHN CLARE. FREDERICK MARTIN. PREFACE. Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.' There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.
Chapter 1 of The Life of John Clare is here in full — 429 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/85 · 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.
a demonstration of approval by clapping the hands together
From this reading “There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.”
past form of “bestow” — present
From this reading “There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.”
United States comedian and film actor (1896-1996)
From this reading “Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'”
a town in northern Maryland to the west of Baltimore
From this reading “FREDERICK MARTIN.”
past form of “hail” — praise vociferously
From this reading “Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'”
the greatest possible degree of something
From this reading “There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.”
a country person
From this reading “Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'”
a short introductory essay preceding the text of a book
From this reading “PREFACE.”
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 Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
in the past
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
outward or visible aspect of a person or thing
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
a demonstration of approval by clapping the hands together
From this reading There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
past form of “bestow” — present
From this reading There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
United States comedian and film actor (1896-1996)
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE LIFE OF JOHN CLARE.
an Indo-European language belonging to the West Germanic branch; the official language of Britain and the United States and most of the commonwealth countries
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
being ten more than thirty
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
at or to or toward the front
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
a town in northern Maryland to the west of Baltimore
From this reading FREDERICK MARTIN.
past form of “hail” — praise vociferously
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading THE LIFE OF JOHN CLARE.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading THE LIFE OF JOHN CLARE.
the greatest possible degree of something
From this reading There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.
of or relating to or characteristic of literature
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
French bishop who is a patron saint of France (died in 397)
From this reading FREDERICK MARTIN.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
not any; not one
From this reading There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.
a county is central England
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE LIFE OF JOHN CLARE.
a country person
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
a writer of poems (the term is usually reserved for writers of good poetry)
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
a short introductory essay preceding the text of a book
From this reading PREFACE.
in an ecstatic manner
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE LIFE OF JOHN CLARE.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There was no limit to the applause bestowed upon him.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
a late time of life
From this reading Some forty years ago, the literary world rapturously hailed the appearance of a new poet, brought forward as 'the Northamptonshire Peasant' and 'the English Burns.'
Chapter 1 of The Life of John Clare by Frederick Martin holds 429 sentences, grouped into 86 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 1 holds 429 sentences of The Life of John Clare, unabridged, divided into 86 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Life of John Clare by Frederick Martin exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 429 sentences, grouped into 86 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 86 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 86 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.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #8470, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 316 minutes of reading across 759 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Life of John Clare section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in The Life of John Clare, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
