The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1

Chapter VII

Chapter 7 of The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1 is here in full — 193 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By T. W. (Thomas Wilkinson) Speight • Curated US English Learning Edition

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English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5

COMING TO DINNER.

Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

A closed book lay on her lap, her chin was resting on the palm of one hand, and her eyes, to all appearance, were taking in for the thousandth time the features of the well-known scene before her.

But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere.

This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

Narrator

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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English

LEARNER DICTIONARY

Archivist

/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

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A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter VII Reading 1/38

The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1 T. W. (Thomas Wilkinson) Speight

Chapter VII

Chapter 7 of The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1 is here in full — 193 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

COMING TO DINNER. Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that. A closed book lay on her lap, her chin was resting on the palm of one hand, and her eyes, to all appearance, were taking in for the thousandth time the features of the well-known scene before her. But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere. This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1

Chapter VII

Chapter 7 of The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1 is here in full — 193 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/38 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

COMING TO DINNER.

/ˈkʌmɪŋ tuː ˈdɪnər/

Line 2

Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

Line 3

A closed book lay on her lap, her chin was resting on the palm of one hand, and her eyes, to all appearance, were taking in for the thousandth time the features of the well-known scene before her.

/ə kloʊzd bʊk leɪ ɑːn hɜːr læp hɜːr tʃɪn wɑːz ˈrestɪŋ ɑːn ðə pɑːm ʌv wʌn hænd ənd hɜːr aɪz tuː ɔːl əˈpɪrəns wɜːr ˈteɪkɪŋ ɪn fɔːr ðə ˈθaʊzəndθ taɪm ðə ˈfiːtʃərz ʌv ðə ˈwelˈnoʊn siːn bɪˈfɔːr hɜːr/

Line 4

But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere.

/bʌt ɪn ˌriːˈælətiː ʃiː sɔː ˈnʌθɪŋ ʌv ɪt hɜːr θɔːts wɜːr ˈelswer/

Line 5

This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

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.

abandoned adjective US /əˈbændənd/

forsaken by owner or inhabitants

From this reading “Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.”

dine verb US /daɪn/

have supper; eat dinner

From this reading “This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.”

elsewhere adverb US /ˈelswer/

in or to another place

From this reading “But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere.”

lap verb US /læp/

lie partly over or alongside of something or of one another

From this reading “A closed book lay on her lap, her chin was resting on the palm of one hand, and her eyes, to all appearance, were taking in for the thousandth time the features of the well-known scene before her.”

palm noun US /pɑːm/

the inner surface of the hand from the wrist to the base of the fingers

thousandth noun US /ˈθaʊzəndθ/

position 1,000 in a countable series of things

Tuesday noun US /ˈtuːzdi/

the third day of the week; the second working day

From this reading “This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.”

well-known adjective US /ˈwelˈnoʊn/

widely or fully known

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.

low chair adjective + noun

In this reading “Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.”

dine at verb + particle

In this reading “This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.”

in reality preposition + noun

used to imply that one would expect the fact to be the opposite of that stated; surprisingly

In this reading “But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere.”

lay on verb + particle

In this reading “A closed book lay on her lap, her chin was resting on the palm of one hand, and her eyes, to all appearance, were taking in for the thousandth time the features of the well-known scene before her.”

by the window preposition + article + noun counted as “by … window”

resting on verb + particle counted as “rest on”

rest on for support

all appearance adjective + noun

All words in this reading · 67

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 A closed book lay on her lap, her chin was resting on the palm of one hand, and her eyes, to all appearance, were taking in for the thousandth time the features of the well-known scene before her.

abandonedadjectiveUS /əˈbændənd/

forsaken by owner or inhabitants

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

appearancenounUS /əˈpɪrəns/

outward or visible aspect of a person or thing

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

bedroomnounUS /ˈbedruːm/

a room used primarily for sleeping

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

booknounUS /bʊk/

a written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)

ButconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

chairnounUS /tʃer/

a seat for one person, with a support for the back

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

chinnounUS /tʃɪn/

the protruding part of the lower jaw

closedadjectiveUS /kloʊzd/

not open or affording passage or access

COMINGnounUS /ˈkʌmɪŋ/

the act of drawing spatially closer to something

From this reading COMING TO DINNER.

Conroy

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

From this reading This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

daynounUS /deɪ/

time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis

From this reading This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

dineverbUS /daɪn/

have supper; eat dinner

From this reading This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

DINNERnounUS /ˈdɪnər/

the main meal of the day served in the evening or at midday

From this reading COMING TO DINNER.

EdwardnounUS /ˈedwərd/

King of England and Ireland in 1936; his marriage to Wallis Warfield Simpson created a constitutional crisis leading to his abdication (1894-1972)

From this reading This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

elsewhereadverbUS /ˈelswer/

in or to another place

From this reading But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere.

eyesnounUS /aɪz/

opinion or judgment

featuresnounUS /ˈfiːtʃərz/

plural of “feature” — a prominent attribute or aspect of something

fixedadjectiveUS /fɪkst/

(of a number) having a fixed and unchanging value

From this reading This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

HallnounUS /hɔːl/

an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open

From this reading This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

handnounUS /hænd/

the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

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

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere.

lapverbUS /læp/

lie partly over or alongside of something or of one another

layverbUS /leɪ/

put into a certain place or abstract location

lowadjectiveUS /loʊ/

less than normal in degree or intensity or amount

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

MissverbUS /mɪs/

fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

northnounUS /nɔːrθ/

the region of the United States lying to the north of the Mason-Dixon line

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

nothingpronounUS /ˈnʌθɪŋ/

not one thing; not anything

From this reading But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere.

occasionnounUS /əˈkeɪʒən/

an event that occurs at a critical time

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

palmnounUS /pɑːm/

the inner surface of the hand from the wrist to the base of the fingers

quarternounUS /ˈkwɔːrtər/

one of four equal parts

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

realitynounUS /ˌriːˈælətiː/

all of your experiences that determine how things appear to you

From this reading But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere.

restingverbUS /ˈrestɪŋ/

-ing form of “rest” — not move; be in a resting position

satnounUS /sæt/

the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

sawverbUS /sɔː/

cut with a saw

From this reading But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere.

scenenounUS /siːn/

the place where some action occurs

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

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

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

sitting-room

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

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

stilladjectiveUS /stɪl/

not in physical motion

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

takingnounUS /ˈteɪkɪŋ/

the act of someone who picks up or takes something

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

ThisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

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

From this reading This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

thoughconjunctionUS /ðoʊ/

in spite of the fact that

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

thoughtsnounUS /θɔːts/

plural of “thought” — the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about

From this reading But in reality she saw nothing of it: her thoughts were elsewhere.

thousandthnounUS /ˈθaʊzəndθ/

position 1,000 in a countable series of things

timenounUS /taɪm/

an instance or single occasion for some event

TOparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading COMING TO DINNER.

TuesdaynounUS /ˈtuːzdi/

the third day of the week; the second working day

From this reading This was Tuesday, the day fixed for Edward Conroy to dine at the Hall.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

well-knownadjectiveUS /ˈwelˈnoʊn/

widely or fully known

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

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

windownounUS /ˈwɪndoʊ/

a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

wingnounUS /wɪŋ/

a movable organ for flying (one of a pair)

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

WinternounUS /ˈwɪntər/

the coldest season of the year; in the northern hemisphere it extends from the winter solstice to the vernal equinox

From this reading Miss Winter sat in her low chair by the window of her sitting-room in the north wing; for though she had abandoned her bedroom in that quarter, she still, on occasion, sat in that.

Chapter 7 of The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1 by T. W. (Thomas Wilkinson) Speight holds 193 sentences, grouped into 39 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 7 of The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1 contain?

Chapter 7 holds 193 sentences of The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1, unabridged, divided into 39 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 7 of The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1 by T. W. (Thomas Wilkinson) Speight exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 193 sentences, grouped into 39 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 7 of The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1?

Work through the 39 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

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Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 7 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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Project Gutenberg eBook #57755, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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Vocabulary met early in The Mysteries of Heron Dyke — Volume 1

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Chapter VII

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