Chapter 25 of The Master of the Ceremonies is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XXV
Chapter 25 of The Master of the Ceremonies is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Heaven help me!" said Fred again; "he is mad." He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words. "God help me! I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear." Fred rose to his feet and looked at the old man aghast.
Chapter 25 of The Master of the Ceremonies is here in full — 395 sentences across 79 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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.
struck with fear, dread, or consternation
From this reading “Fred rose to his feet and looked at the old man aghast.”
Extreme physical or mental suffering; intense anguish.
From this reading “I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."”
using the voice; not silently
From this reading “He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.”
roused to anger
From this reading “"Heaven help me!" said Fred again; "he is mad."”
to a pitiful degree
From this reading “I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."”
any process serving to define the shape of something
From this reading “He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.”
uttered through the medium of speech or characterized by speech; sometimes used in combination
From this reading “He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.”
without awareness
From this reading “He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.”
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.
a man who is very old
In this reading “He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.”
take into consideration for exemplifying purposes
In this reading “Fred rose to his feet and looked at the old man aghast.”
In this reading “I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."”
pursue or resume
In this reading “He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.”
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.
anew
From this reading "Heaven help me!" said Fred again; "he is mad."
struck with fear, dread, or consternation
From this reading Fred rose to his feet and looked at the old man aghast.
Extreme physical or mental suffering; intense anguish.
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
using the voice; not silently
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Fred rose to his feet and looked at the old man aghast.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
have
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading Fred rose to his feet and looked at the old man aghast.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Heaven help me!" said Fred again; "he is mad."
grant freedom to; free from confinement
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions
From this reading "God help me!
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Heaven help me!" said Fred again; "he is mad."
any place of complete bliss and delight and peace
From this reading "Heaven help me!" said Fred again; "he is mad."
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading "Heaven help me!" said Fred again; "he is mad."
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Heaven help me!" said Fred again; "he is mad."
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Fred rose to his feet and looked at the old man aghast.
roused to anger
From this reading "Heaven help me!" said Fred again; "he is mad."
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Heaven help me!" said Fred again; "he is mad."
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
to a pitiful degree
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading Fred rose to his feet and looked at the old man aghast.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Heaven help me!" said Fred again; "he is mad."
any process serving to define the shape of something
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
uttered through the medium of speech or characterized by speech; sometimes used in combination
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
plural of “thought” — the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
without awareness
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
hope for; have a wish
From this reading I wish I were," he said pitifully, "for the mad must be free from the agony which I have to bear."
the words that are spoken
From this reading He had spoken aloud, shaping his thoughts unconsciously, and the old man took up his words.
Chapter 25 of The Master of the Ceremonies by George Manville Fenn holds 395 sentences, grouped into 79 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 25 holds 395 sentences of The Master of the Ceremonies, unabridged, divided into 79 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 25 of The Master of the Ceremonies by George Manville Fenn exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 395 sentences, grouped into 79 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 79 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 79 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 25 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 Master of the Ceremonies by George Manville Fenn on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 11848 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34492 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34492, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2370 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Master of the Ceremonies section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 29 chapters of The Master of the Ceremonies 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 Master of the Ceremonies, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
