Chapter 1 of The Moving Finger is here in full — 437 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Moving Finger is here in full — 437 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.” “Hi--hey--hold up there, mare, will you? What did you say, mister? A light? Yes.
Chapter 1 of The Moving Finger is here in full — 437 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/87 · 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.
postpone indefinitely or annul something that was scheduled
From this reading ““The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.””
knowledge gained through tradition or anecdote
From this reading ““The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.””
female equine animal
From this reading ““Hi--hey--hold up there, mare, will you?”
a form of address for a man
From this reading “What did you say, mister?”
plural of “move” — the act of deciding to do something
From this reading ““The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.””
righteousness by virtue of being pious
From this reading ““The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.””
(law) a legal document issued by a court or judicial officer
From this reading ““The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.””
third-person singular of “write” — produce a literary work
From this reading ““The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.””
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 Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
postpone indefinitely or annul something that was scheduled
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading What did you say, mister?
feel or handle with the fingers
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
the -ing form of “have”
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Hi--hey--hold up there, mare, will you?
an expression of greeting
From this reading “Hi--hey--hold up there, mare, will you?
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading “Hi--hey--hold up there, mare, will you?
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading A light?
a formation of people or things one beside another
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
knowledge gained through tradition or anecdote
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
female equine animal
From this reading “Hi--hey--hold up there, mare, will you?
a form of address for a man
From this reading What did you say, mister?
plural of “move” — the act of deciding to do something
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
in motion
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
and not; used after a negative to add a second negative
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
righteousness by virtue of being pious
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
express in words
From this reading What did you say, mister?
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds)
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
in or at that place or location
From this reading “Hi--hey--hold up there, mare, will you?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading “Hi--hey--hold up there, mare, will you?
clean with some chemical process
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What did you say, mister?
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading “Hi--hey--hold up there, mare, will you?
a message whose ingenuity or verbal skill or incongruity has the power to evoke laughter
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
a unit of language that native speakers can identify
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
(law) a legal document issued by a court or judicial officer
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
third-person singular of “write” — produce a literary work
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
an affirmative
From this reading Yes.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Hi--hey--hold up there, mare, will you?
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on; nor all your piety and wit Shall lore it back to cancel half a line, Nor all your tears wash out a word of it.”
Chapter 1 of The Moving Finger by Mary Gaunt holds 437 sentences, grouped into 88 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 1 holds 437 sentences of The Moving Finger, unabridged, divided into 88 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Moving Finger by Mary Gaunt exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 437 sentences, grouped into 88 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 88 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 88 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 1 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 Moving Finger by Mary Gaunt on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3046 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21335 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21335, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 253 minutes of reading across 610 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Moving Finger section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of The Moving Finger 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 Moving Finger, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
