Chapter 9 of The Muse of the Department is here in full — 125 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of The Muse of the Department is here in full — 125 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Guess!” cried Lousteau. “The corresponding page is not here. We must look to page 212 to relieve our anxiety.” 212 OLYMPIA “If the key had been lost?” “He would now be a dead man.”
Chapter 9 of The Muse of the Department is here in full — 125 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/25 · 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.
(psychiatry) a relatively permanent state of worry and nervousness occurring in a variety of mental disorders, usually accompanied by compulsive behavior or attacks of panic
From this reading “We must look to page 212 to relieve our anxiety.””
accompanying
From this reading ““The corresponding page is not here.”
expect, believe, or suppose
From this reading ““Guess!” cried Lousteau.”
metal device shaped in such a way that when it is inserted into the appropriate lock the lock's mechanism can be rotated
From this reading “212 OLYMPIA “If the key had been lost?””
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading “212 OLYMPIA “If the key had been lost?””
capital of the state of Washington; located in western Washington on Puget Sound
From this reading “212 OLYMPIA “If the key had been lost?””
one side of one leaf (of a book or magazine or newspaper or letter etc.) or the written or pictorial matter it contains
From this reading ““The corresponding page is not here.”
provide physical relief, as from pain
From this reading “We must look to page 212 to relieve our anxiety.””
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading We must look to page 212 to relieve our anxiety.”
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading “He would now be a dead man.”
(psychiatry) a relatively permanent state of worry and nervousness occurring in a variety of mental disorders, usually accompanied by compulsive behavior or attacks of panic
From this reading We must look to page 212 to relieve our anxiety.”
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “He would now be a dead man.”
the past participle of “be”
From this reading 212 OLYMPIA “If the key had been lost?”
accompanying
From this reading “The corresponding page is not here.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading “Guess!” cried Lousteau.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading “He would now be a dead man.”
expect, believe, or suppose
From this reading “Guess!” cried Lousteau.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading 212 OLYMPIA “If the key had been lost?”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “He would now be a dead man.”
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading “The corresponding page is not here.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading 212 OLYMPIA “If the key had been lost?”
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “The corresponding page is not here.
metal device shaped in such a way that when it is inserted into the appropriate lock the lock's mechanism can be rotated
From this reading 212 OLYMPIA “If the key had been lost?”
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading We must look to page 212 to relieve our anxiety.”
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading 212 OLYMPIA “If the key had been lost?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Guess!” cried Lousteau.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading “He would now be a dead man.”
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading We must look to page 212 to relieve our anxiety.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “The corresponding page is not here.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “He would now be a dead man.”
capital of the state of Washington; located in western Washington on Puget Sound
From this reading 212 OLYMPIA “If the key had been lost?”
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading We must look to page 212 to relieve our anxiety.”
one side of one leaf (of a book or magazine or newspaper or letter etc.) or the written or pictorial matter it contains
From this reading “The corresponding page is not here.
provide physical relief, as from pain
From this reading We must look to page 212 to relieve our anxiety.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “The corresponding page is not here.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading We must look to page 212 to relieve our anxiety.”
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading We must look to page 212 to relieve our anxiety.”
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading “He would now be a dead man.”
Chapter 9 of The Muse of the Department by Honoré de Balzac holds 125 sentences, grouped into 25 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 9 holds 125 sentences of The Muse of the Department, unabridged, divided into 25 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of The Muse of the Department by Honoré de Balzac exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 125 sentences, grouped into 25 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 25 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 25 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 9 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 Muse of the Department by Honoré de Balzac on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2711 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1912 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1912, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 225 minutes of reading across 543 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Muse of the Department section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 19 chapters of The Muse of the Department 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 Muse of the Department, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
