Chapter 1 of The Mysterious Affair at Styles is here in full — 355 sentences across 71 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Mysterious Affair at Styles is here in full — 355 sentences across 71 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Hard up, are you?” “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.” “Couldn’t your brother help you?” “Lawrence? He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
Chapter 1 of The Mysterious Affair at Styles is here in full — 355 sentences across 71 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 69/71 · 5 reading units · Lines 341–345
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.
plural of “binding” — the capacity to attract and hold something
From this reading “He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.”
United States architect who formed and important architectural firm with John Merven Carrere (1860-1929)
From this reading ““My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.””
Roman martyr; supposedly Lawrence was ordered by the police to give up the church's treasure and when he responded by presenting the poor people of Rome he was roasted to death on a gridiron (died in 258)
From this reading ““Lawrence?”
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading “He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.”
the business of issuing printed matter for sale or distribution
From this reading “He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.”
very bad
From this reading “He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.”
plural of “verse” — literature in metrical form
From this reading “He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.”
the basic human power of intelligent thought and perception
From this reading ““My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.””
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.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “Hard up, are you?”
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
plural of “binding” — the capacity to attract and hold something
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading “Couldn’t your brother help you?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Couldn’t your brother help you?”
dearly loved
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
at any time
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
something many people believe that is false
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
destroyed or killed
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
From this reading “Hard up, are you?”
United States architect who formed and important architectural firm with John Merven Carrere (1860-1929)
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading “Couldn’t your brother help you?”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
Roman martyr; supposedly Lawrence was ordered by the police to give up the church's treasure and when he responded by presenting the poor people of Rome he was roasted to death on a gridiron (died in 258)
From this reading “Lawrence?
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
the most common medium of exchange; functions as legal tender
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
a fractional monetary unit of Ireland and the United Kingdom; equal to one hundredth of a pound
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
the business of issuing printed matter for sale or distribution
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
very bad
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
disclosing unintentionally something concealed
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading “Hard up, are you?”
plural of “verse” — literature in metrical form
From this reading He’s gone through every penny he ever had, publishing rotten verses in fancy bindings.
the basic human power of intelligent thought and perception
From this reading “My dear Hastings, I don’t mind telling you that I’m at my wits’ end for money.”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Hard up, are you?”
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Couldn’t your brother help you?”
Chapter 1 of The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie holds 355 sentences, grouped into 71 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 355 sentences of The Mysterious Affair at Styles, unabridged, divided into 71 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 355 sentences, grouped into 71 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 71 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 71 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 Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5287 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #863 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #863, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 440 minutes of reading across 1058 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Mysterious Affair at Styles section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of The Mysterious Affair at Styles 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 Mysterious Affair at Styles, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
