Chapter 26 of The Messenger of the Black Prince is here in full — 214 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVI
Chapter 26 of The Messenger of the Black Prince is here in full — 214 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE ABBOT OF CHALONNES The captain gave a start. He stared a while at the man. A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes. He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in. You are some one else.”
Chapter 26 of The Messenger of the Black Prince is here in full — 214 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/42 · 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.
the superior of an abbey of monks
From this reading “THE ABBOT OF CHALONNES The captain gave a start.”
plural of “corner” — a place off to the side of an area
From this reading “A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.”
(of hair) making curls or having been made to curl
From this reading “A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.”
people in general (often used in the plural)
From this reading “He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.”
a traditional story accepted as history; serves to explain the world view of a people
From this reading “He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.”
not moving quickly; taking a comparatively long time
From this reading “A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.”
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading “He stared a while at the man.”
the cognitive condition of someone who understands
From this reading “A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.”
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 “He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.”
In this reading “A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.”
In this reading “A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.”
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 THE ABBOT OF CHALONNES The captain gave a start.
the superior of an abbey of monks
From this reading THE ABBOT OF CHALONNES The captain gave a start.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading You are some one else.”
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading He stared a while at the man.
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.
an officer holding a rank below a major but above a lieutenant
From this reading THE ABBOT OF CHALONNES The captain gave a start.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE ABBOT OF CHALONNES The captain gave a start.
plural of “corner” — a place off to the side of an area
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
a politically organized body of people under a single government
From this reading He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.
(of hair) making curls or having been made to curl
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You are some one else.”
people in general (often used in the plural)
From this reading He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading THE ABBOT OF CHALONNES The captain gave a start.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He stared a while at the man.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading He stared a while at the man.
the opening through which food is taken in and vocalizations emerge
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
a traditional story accepted as history; serves to explain the world view of a people
From this reading He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.
not any; not one
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE ABBOT OF CHALONNES The captain gave a start.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading You are some one else.”
and nothing more
From this reading He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.
a human being
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
having few parts; not complex or complicated or involved
From this reading He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.
not moving quickly; taking a comparatively long time
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading You are some one else.”
past form of “stare” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading He stared a while at the man.
take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading THE ABBOT OF CHALONNES The captain gave a start.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE ABBOT OF CHALONNES The captain gave a start.
in or at that place or location
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He is only a myth for the simple country folk to believe in.
the cognitive condition of someone who understands
From this reading A slow understanding smile curled at the corners of his mouth and he said, “There is no such person as the Abbot of Chalonnes.
during the time that
From this reading He stared a while at the man.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You are some one else.”
Chapter 26 of The Messenger of the Black Prince by Thomas A. H. Mawhinney holds 214 sentences, grouped into 43 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 26 holds 214 sentences of The Messenger of the Black Prince, unabridged, divided into 43 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 26 of The Messenger of the Black Prince by Thomas A. H. Mawhinney exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 214 sentences, grouped into 43 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 43 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 43 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 26 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 Messenger of the Black Prince by Thomas A. H. Mawhinney on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5084 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #50193 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #50193, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 423 minutes of reading across 1017 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Messenger of the Black Prince section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of The Messenger of the Black Prince 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 Messenger of the Black Prince, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
