Chapter 3 of The Memoirs of a Failure is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Memoirs of a Failure is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“His name was Missed-It.” “Is he dead?” “Yes, he died yesterday.” “What a strange name;” I mused. “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
Chapter 3 of The Memoirs of a Failure is here in full — 417 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.
make it possible through a specific action or lack of action for something to happen
From this reading ““No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.”
past form of “die” — pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading ““Yes, he died yesterday.””
thin curly wood shavings used for packing or stuffing
From this reading ““No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.”
people in general (often used in the plural)
From this reading ““No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.”
past form of “muse” — reflect deeply on a subject
From this reading ““What a strange name;” I mused.”
verbal abuse; a crude substitute for argument
From this reading ““No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.”
continuing or enduring without marked change in status or condition or place
From this reading ““No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.”
the day immediately before today
From this reading ““Yes, he died yesterday.””
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.
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 “What a strange name;” I mused.
make it possible through a specific action or lack of action for something to happen
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading “Is he dead?”
past form of “die” — pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading “Yes, he died yesterday.”
thin curly wood shavings used for packing or stuffing
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
people in general (often used in the plural)
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “Is he dead?”
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading “His name was Missed-It.”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “What a strange name;” I mused.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Is he dead?”
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 “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “His name was Missed-It.”
past form of “muse” — reflect deeply on a subject
From this reading “What a strange name;” I mused.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading “His name was Missed-It.”
verbal abuse; a crude substitute for argument
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
not any; not one
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
continuing or enduring without marked change in status or condition or place
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading “What a strange name;” I mused.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
up to a particular time
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “His name was Missed-It.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “What a strange name;” I mused.
an affirmative
From this reading “Yes, he died yesterday.”
the day immediately before today
From this reading “Yes, he died yesterday.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “No, not if you knew him,” said the Excelsior, “you know I never allow my great folk to have permanent names until they are dead.
Chapter 3 of The Memoirs of a Failure by Daniel Wright Kittredge holds 417 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 3 holds 417 sentences of The Memoirs of a Failure, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Memoirs of a Failure by Daniel Wright Kittredge exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 417 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 3 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 Memoirs of a Failure by Daniel Wright Kittredge on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2060 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #67204 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #67204, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 171 minutes of reading across 412 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Memoirs of a Failure section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of The Memoirs of a Failure 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 Memoirs of a Failure, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
