Chapter 1 of The Louisa Alcott Reader is here in full — 1328 sentences across 266 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Louisa Alcott Reader is here in full — 1328 sentences across 266 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Thank you. Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them. "He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now. We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees. My name is Johnny Cake, and she's Sally Lunn.
Chapter 1 of The Louisa Alcott Reader is here in full — 1328 sentences across 266 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 83/265 · 5 reading units · Lines 411–415
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 block of solid substance (such as soap or wax)
From this reading “My name is Johnny Cake, and she's Sally Lunn.”
plural of “degree” — a position on a scale of intensity or amount or quality
From this reading “We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.”
perennial plants having thick branching aromatic rhizomes and leafy reedlike stems
From this reading “"He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now.”
any liliaceous plant of the genus Lilium having showy pendulous flowers
From this reading “Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.”
a shaped mass of baked bread that is usually sliced before eating
From this reading “We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.”
a sweet quick bread baked in a cup-shaped pan
From this reading “Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.”
witty remark
From this reading “My name is Johnny Cake, and she's Sally Lunn.”
utter in an angry, sharp, or abrupt tone
From this reading “"He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now.”
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 “We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.”
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 "He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
the two together, not just one
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
a block of solid substance (such as soap or wax)
From this reading My name is Johnny Cake, and she's Sally Lunn.
plural of “degree” — a position on a scale of intensity or amount or quality
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
the experiencing of affective and emotional states
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
perennial plants having thick branching aromatic rhizomes and leafy reedlike stems
From this reading "He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
“Johnny” was applied as a nickname for Confederate soldiers by the Federal soldiers in the American Civil War; “greyback” derived from their grey Confederate uniforms
From this reading My name is Johnny Cake, and she's Sally Lunn.
found pleasant or attractive; often used as a combining form
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
any liliaceous plant of the genus Lilium having showy pendulous flowers
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
a shaped mass of baked bread that is usually sliced before eating
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading My name is Johnny Cake, and she's Sally Lunn.
a sweet quick bread baked in a cup-shaped pan
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading My name is Johnny Cake, and she's Sally Lunn.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading My name is Johnny Cake, and she's Sally Lunn.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading "He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now.
on one occasion
From this reading "He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
being complete of its kind and without defect or blemish
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
witty remark
From this reading My name is Johnny Cake, and she's Sally Lunn.
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading My name is Johnny Cake, and she's Sally Lunn.
utter in an angry, sharp, or abrupt tone
From this reading "He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now.
express gratitude or show appreciation to
From this reading "Thank you.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "He was Ginger Snap once, but he's a Muffin now.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
which person or people
From this reading Who is Muffin?" asked Lily, feeling as if she had seen both these little people before, and liked them.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading We begin in that way, and work up to the perfect loaf by degrees.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Thank you.
Chapter 1 of The Louisa Alcott Reader by Louisa May Alcott holds 1328 sentences, grouped into 266 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 1328 sentences of The Louisa Alcott Reader, unabridged, divided into 266 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Louisa Alcott Reader by Louisa May Alcott exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 1328 sentences, grouped into 266 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 266 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 266 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 Louisa Alcott Reader by Louisa May Alcott on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Louisa Alcott Reader section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The Louisa Alcott Reader 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 Louisa Alcott Reader, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
