Chapter 4 of The Matador of the Five Towns and Other is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Matador of the Five Towns and Other is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased. And then she guessed that Jean had gone to sleep. But Mimi did not go to sleep. She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life. She saw the whole affair clearly.
Chapter 4 of The Matador of the Five Towns and Other is here in full — 419 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
an enzyme found in mammals that can catalyze the deamination of adenosine into inosine and ammonia
From this reading “She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.”
made or joined or united into one
From this reading “She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.”
past form of “guess” — expect, believe, or suppose
From this reading “And then she guessed that Jean had gone to sleep.”
a coarse durable twill-weave cotton fabric
From this reading “She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.”
possessive form of “jean” — a coarse durable twill-weave cotton fabric
From this reading “She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.”
unequivocally detestable
From this reading “She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.”
plural of “sob” — a dyspneic condition
From this reading “She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.”
past form of “still” — make calm or still
From this reading “She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.”
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 She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
an enzyme found in mammals that can catalyze the deamination of adenosine into inosine and ammonia
From this reading She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading She saw the whole affair clearly.
later than; following
From this reading She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But Mimi did not go to sleep.
past form of “cease” — put an end to a state or an activity
From this reading She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.
without doubt or question
From this reading She saw the whole affair clearly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.
made or joined or united into one
From this reading She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading But Mimi did not go to sleep.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading But Mimi did not go to sleep.
destroyed or killed
From this reading And then she guessed that Jean had gone to sleep.
in a gradual manner
From this reading She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
past form of “guess” — expect, believe, or suppose
From this reading And then she guessed that Jean had gone to sleep.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading And then she guessed that Jean had gone to sleep.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
a coarse durable twill-weave cotton fabric
From this reading And then she guessed that Jean had gone to sleep.
possessive form of “jean” — a coarse durable twill-weave cotton fabric
From this reading She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But Mimi did not go to sleep.
a form of address for a man
From this reading She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading But Mimi did not go to sleep.
unequivocally detestable
From this reading She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
an irrecoverable state of devastation and destruction
From this reading She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.
cut with a saw
From this reading She saw the whole affair clearly.
a person working in the service of another (especially in the household)
From this reading She knew that chance, and Mr Coe, and that odious new servant, Ada, had combined to ruin her life.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading And then she guessed that Jean had gone to sleep.
plural of “sob” — a dyspneic condition
From this reading She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
past form of “still” — make calm or still
From this reading She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading And then she guessed that Jean had gone to sleep.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She saw the whole affair clearly.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading And then she guessed that Jean had gone to sleep.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading She gradually stilled her own sobs, and after a time Jean's ceased.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading And then she guessed that Jean had gone to sleep.
including all components without exception; being one unit or constituting the full amount or extent or duration; complete
From this reading She saw the whole affair clearly.
Chapter 4 of The Matador of the Five Towns and Other by Arnold Bennett holds 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 4 holds 419 sentences of The Matador of the Five Towns and Other, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Matador of the Five Towns and Other by Arnold Bennett exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 419 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 4 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 Matador of the Five Towns and Other by Arnold Bennett on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7037 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #12995 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #12995, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 586 minutes of reading across 1408 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Matador of the Five Towns and Other section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of The Matador of the Five Towns and Other 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 Matador of the Five Towns and Other, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
