Chapter 11 of The Little Match Man is here in full — 43 sentences across 9 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XI
Chapter 11 of The Little Match Man is here in full — 43 sentences across 9 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China. Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere. In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared. I was very anxious. There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
Chapter 11 of The Little Match Man is here in full — 43 sentences across 9 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/8 · 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.
at or in or to any place
From this reading “There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.”
a communist nation that covers a vast territory in eastern Asia; the most populous country in the world
From this reading “A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.”
the attire worn in a play or at a fancy dress ball
From this reading “A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.”
any property detected by the olfactory system
From this reading “There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.”
plural of “pagoda” — an Asian temple; usually a pyramidal tower with an upward curving roof
From this reading “Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.”
British writer of short stories (1870-1916)
From this reading “There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.”
inflected form of “spy” — catch sight of
From this reading “Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.”
a just detectable amount
From this reading “There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.”
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 “Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.”
In this reading “In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.”
perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements; filled with bewilderment
In this reading “Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.”
In this reading “Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.”
In this reading “A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.”
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 A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.
later than; following
From this reading A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
eagerly desirous
From this reading I was very anxious.
at or in or to any place
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
past form of “arrive” — reach a destination; arrive by movement or progress
From this reading A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
a (usually rectangular) container; may have a lid
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
a communist nation that covers a vast territory in eastern Asia; the most populous country in the world
From this reading A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.
the attire worn in a play or at a fancy dress ball
From this reading A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.
past form of “disappear” — get lost, as without warning or explanation
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
make void or empty of contents
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
to or in any or all places
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
apart from; not including
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
the experiencing of affective and emotional states
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
green color or pigment; resembling the color of growing grass
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
plural of “hill” — a local and well-defined elevation of the land
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
the land on which real estate is located
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
not any; not one
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
any property detected by the olfactory system
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
plural of “pagoda” — an Asian temple; usually a pyramidal tower with an upward curving roof
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
British writer of short stories (1870-1916)
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
a division of an ocean or a large body of salt water partially enclosed by land
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
inflected form of “spy” — catch sight of
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
a just detectable amount
From this reading There was no trace anywhere of my little friend except an odor of saki.
precisely as stated
From this reading I was very anxious.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading In the morning, not feeling Fiam move, I looked for him in his box, but it was empty, and he had disappeared.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading A CURIOUS COSTUME The day after that we arrived in China.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Far out at sea we spied the land—all green hills with pagodas everywhere.
Chapter 11 of The Little Match Man by Luigi Barzini holds 43 sentences, grouped into 9 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 11 holds 43 sentences of The Little Match Man, unabridged, divided into 9 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of The Little Match Man by Luigi Barzini exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 43 sentences, grouped into 9 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 9 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 9 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 11 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 Little Match Man by Luigi Barzini on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1293 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #54678 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #54678, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 107 minutes of reading across 259 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Little Match Man section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 20 chapters of The Little Match Man 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 Little Match Man, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
