Chapter XVII of The Magnetic Girl, “The Brown Man,” is here in full — 170 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter XVII of The Magnetic Girl, “The Brown Man,” is here in full — 170 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether. I wished I was better dressed. It made me wild to see women in such lovely things. Not that I envied them their clothes. I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
Chapter XVII of The Magnetic Girl, “The Brown Man,” is here in full — 170 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/34 · 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.
to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (“whole” is often used informally for “wholly”)
From this reading “I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.”
dressed or clothed especially in fine attire; often used in combination
From this reading “I wished I was better dressed.”
-ing form of “enjoy” — derive or receive pleasure from; get enjoyment from; take pleasure in
From this reading “I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.”
inflected form of “envy” — feel envious towards; admire enviously
From this reading “Not that I envied them their clothes.”
a feeling of grudging admiration and desire to have something that is possessed by another
From this reading “I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.”
to certain extent or degree
From this reading “I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.”
appealing to the emotions as well as the eye
From this reading “It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.”
with safety; in a safe manner
From this reading “I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.”
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 “It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.”
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 I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
later than; following
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
(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 I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (“whole” is often used informally for “wholly”)
From this reading I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
(comparative of “good”) superior to another (of the same class or set or kind) in excellence or quality or desirability or suitability; more highly skilled than another
From this reading I wished I was better dressed.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
clothing in general
From this reading Not that I envied them their clothes.
dressed or clothed especially in fine attire; often used in combination
From this reading I wished I was better dressed.
-ing form of “enjoy” — derive or receive pleasure from; get enjoyment from; take pleasure in
From this reading I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.
inflected form of “envy” — feel envious towards; admire enviously
From this reading Not that I envied them their clothes.
a feeling of grudging admiration and desire to have something that is possessed by another
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
all things; all of a situation
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
to certain extent or degree
From this reading I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.
appealing to the emotions as well as the eye
From this reading It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “as” or “too” or “so” or “that”; amounting to a large but indefinite number
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Not that I envied them their clothes.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
pleasing by delicacy or grace; not imposing
From this reading I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
with safety; in a safe manner
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
express in words
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.
the act of someone who picks up or takes something
From this reading I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Not that I envied them their clothes.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Not that I envied them their clothes.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Not that I envied them their clothes.
in or at that place or location
From this reading I can safely say that about a good many of them, that was all there was to envy; and, after all, clothes are not quite everything.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was enjoying myself pretty fairly, taking it altogether.
marked by extreme lack of restraint or control
From this reading It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.
past form of “wish” — hope for; have a wish
From this reading I wished I was better dressed.
plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading It made me wild to see women in such lovely things.
Chapter 17 of The Magnetic Girl by Richard Marsh holds 170 sentences, grouped into 34 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 17 holds 170 sentences of The Magnetic Girl, unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of The Magnetic Girl by Richard Marsh exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 170 sentences, grouped into 34 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 34 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 34 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 17 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 Magnetic Girl by Richard Marsh on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4244 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #64957 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #64957, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 353 minutes of reading across 849 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Magnetic Girl section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of The Magnetic Girl 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 Magnetic Girl, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
