The Mission of Poubalov

Chapter XXVII

Chapter 27 of The Mission of Poubalov is here in full — 167 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Frederick R. (Frederick Russell) Burton • Curated US English Learning Edition

Cover illustration for The Mission of Poubalov

English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.

"About this hour, one week ago to-day," thought Clara as she took her place again in the coupé, "I should have been getting into a carriage at the church door, with Ivan, as his wife!

What an eternity seems to have passed since then!

Will the search and the waiting never end?"

There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.

Narrator

Speed 0.75x

AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English

LEARNER DICTIONARY

Archivist

/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter XXVII Reading 1/33

The Mission of Poubalov

Chapter XXVII

Chapter 27 of The Mission of Poubalov is here in full — 167 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/33 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.

/bɪˈhaɪnd kloʊzd dɔːrz/

Line 2

"About this hour, one week ago to-day," thought Clara as she took her place again in the coupé, "I should have been getting into a carriage at the church door, with Ivan, as his wife!

Line 3

What an eternity seems to have passed since then!

/wʌt æn ɪˈtɜːrnəti siːmz tuː hæv pæst sɪns ðen/

Line 4

Will the search and the waiting never end?"

/wɪl ðə sɜːrtʃ ənd ðə ˈweɪtɪŋ ˈnevər end/

Line 5

There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.

/ðer wɜːr noʊ terz naʊ noʊ ˌdɪspəˈzɪʃən tuː ɡɪv weɪ/

Learner Dictionary

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.

carriage noun US /ˈkærɪdʒ/

a railcar where passengers ride

From this reading “"About this hour, one week ago to-day," thought Clara as she took her place again in the coupé, "I should have been getting into a carriage at the church door, with Ivan, as his wife!”

closed adjective US /kloʊzd/

not open or affording passage or access

From this reading “BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.”

disposition noun US /ˌdɪspəˈzɪʃən/

your usual mood

From this reading “There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.”

doors noun US /dɔːrz/

plural of “door” — a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle

From this reading “BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.”

eternity noun US /ɪˈtɜːrnəti/

time without end

From this reading “What an eternity seems to have passed since then!”

search verb US /sɜːrtʃ/

try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of

From this reading “Will the search and the waiting never end?"”

waiting noun US /ˈweɪtɪŋ/

the act of waiting (remaining inactive in one place while expecting something)

From this reading “Will the search and the waiting never end?"”

week noun US /wiːk/

any period of seven consecutive days

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

CLOSED DOORS adjective + noun counted as “closed door”

In this reading “BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.”

passed since verb + particle counted as “pass since”

In this reading “What an eternity seems to have passed since then!”

give way verb + noun

move in order to make room for someone for something

In this reading “There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.”

into a carriage preposition + article + noun counted as “into … carriage”

In this reading “"About this hour, one week ago to-day," thought Clara as she took her place again in the coupé, "I should have been getting into a carriage at the church door, with Ivan, as his wife!”

church door noun + noun

since then preposition + adverb

In this reading “What an eternity seems to have passed since then!”

All words in this reading · 58

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading "About this hour, one week ago to-day," thought Clara as she took her place again in the coupé, "I should have been getting into a carriage at the church door, with Ivan, as his wife!

AboutprepositionUS /əˈbaʊt/

on the subject of; concerning

againadverbUS /əˈɡen/

anew

agoadverbUS /əˈɡoʊ/

in the past

andeterminerUS /æn/

the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound

From this reading What an eternity seems to have passed since then!

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading Will the search and the waiting never end?"

asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

BEHINDprepositionUS /bɪˈhaɪnd/

at or toward the back of something

From this reading BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.

carriagenounUS /ˈkærɪdʒ/

a railcar where passengers ride

churchnounUS /tʃɜːrtʃ/

one of the groups of Christians who have their own beliefs and forms of worship

Clara

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

CLOSEDadjectiveUS /kloʊzd/

not open or affording passage or access

From this reading BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.

coupé

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

dispositionnounUS /ˌdɪspəˈzɪʃən/

your usual mood

From this reading There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.

doornounUS /dɔːr/

a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle

DOORSnounUS /dɔːrz/

plural of “door” — a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle

From this reading BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.

endnounUS /end/

either extremity of something that has length

From this reading Will the search and the waiting never end?"

eternitynounUS /ɪˈtɜːrnəti/

time without end

From this reading What an eternity seems to have passed since then!

gettingnounUS /ˈɡetɪŋ/

the act of acquiring something

giveverbUS /ɡɪv/

cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense

From this reading There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

hournounUS /ˈaʊər/

a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

Ivan

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

neveradverbUS /ˈnevər/

not ever; at no time in the past or future

From this reading Will the search and the waiting never end?"

nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.

nowadverbUS /naʊ/

in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events

From this reading There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

passedverbUS /pæst/

past form of “pass” — go across or through

From this reading What an eternity seems to have passed since then!

placenounUS /pleɪs/

a point located with respect to surface features of some region

searchverbUS /sɜːrtʃ/

try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of

From this reading Will the search and the waiting never end?"

seemsverbUS /siːmz/

third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect

From this reading What an eternity seems to have passed since then!

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

shouldmodal verbUS /ʃʊd/

used to say what is right, expected, or advisable

sinceprepositionUS /sɪns/

from a time in the past until now

From this reading What an eternity seems to have passed since then!

tearsnounUS /terz/

the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds)

From this reading There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

thenadverbUS /ðen/

subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)

From this reading What an eternity seems to have passed since then!

ThereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.

thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

thoughtnounUS /θɔːt/

the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading What an eternity seems to have passed since then!

to-day

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

tookverbUS /tʊk/

inflected form of “take” — carry out

waitingnounUS /ˈweɪtɪŋ/

the act of waiting (remaining inactive in one place while expecting something)

From this reading Will the search and the waiting never end?"

waynounUS /weɪ/

how something is done or how it happens

From this reading There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.

weeknounUS /wiːk/

any period of seven consecutive days

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading There were no tears now, no disposition to give way.

WhatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading What an eternity seems to have passed since then!

wifenounUS /waɪf/

a married woman; a man's partner in marriage

Willmodal verbUS /wɪl/

used to talk about the future, or about willingness

From this reading Will the search and the waiting never end?"

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

Chapter 27 of The Mission of Poubalov by Frederick R. (Frederick Russell) Burton holds 167 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.

What does chapter 27 of The Mission of Poubalov contain?

Chapter 27 holds 167 sentences of The Mission of Poubalov, unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 27 of The Mission of Poubalov by Frederick R. (Frederick Russell) Burton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 167 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.

How do I study chapter 27 of The Mission of Poubalov?

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.

Can chapter 27 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 27 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.

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Is this the complete text of The Mission of Poubalov?

Yes. All 4206 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #46774 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #46774, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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About 350 minutes of reading across 842 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Vocabulary met early in The Mission of Poubalov

Words and structures a reader meets early in The Mission of Poubalov, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Https: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Mission of Poubalov; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Pulled: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Mission of Poubalov; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Aside: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Mission of Poubalov; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Curtain: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Mission of Poubalov; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.

Chapter XXVII

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