Chapter 10 of The optimist is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter X
Chapter 10 of The optimist is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said: “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again. Are you going to Scotland tonight?” “Indeed I am. Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
Chapter 10 of The optimist is here in full — 417 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
a prominent attribute or aspect of something
From this reading “It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:”
past form of “glance” — throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading “It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:”
provoking horror
From this reading “Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.”
possessive form of “mother” — a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
one of the four countries that make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; located on the northern part of the island of Great Britain; famous for bagpipes and plaids and kilts
From this reading “Are you going to Scotland tonight?””
plural of “sort” — a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading “Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.”
disclosing unintentionally something concealed
From this reading “Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.”
On the present night.
From this reading “Are you going to Scotland tonight?””
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.
In this reading ““I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.”
In this reading “It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:”
In this reading “Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.”
In this reading ““I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.”
In this reading “Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
anew
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
(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 Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading “Indeed I am.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Are you going to Scotland tonight?”
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
a prominent attribute or aspect of something
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
past form of “glance” — throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
the act of departing
From this reading Are you going to Scotland tonight?”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
provoking horror
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading “Indeed I am.
in place of, or as an alternative to
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
come together
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
possessive form of “mother” — a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
and nothing more
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
with considerable certainty; without much doubt
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
one of the four countries that make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; located on the northern part of the island of Great Britain; famous for bagpipes and plaids and kilts
From this reading Are you going to Scotland tonight?”
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
plural of “sort” — a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
express a supposition
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
disclosing unintentionally something concealed
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
in or at that place or location
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading Fred is there now, at his mother’s, telling her all sorts of horrible things about me, I suppose.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Are you going to Scotland tonight?”
On the present night.
From this reading Are you going to Scotland tonight?”
the cardinal number that is the sum of nineteen and one
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
look attentively
From this reading It was characteristic of her that, instead, she glanced at her watch and said:
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “I can only stay another twenty minutes, and we shall probably not meet again.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Are you going to Scotland tonight?”
Chapter 10 of The optimist by E. M. Delafield holds 417 sentences, grouped into 84 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 10 holds 417 sentences of The optimist, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 10 of The optimist by E. M. Delafield exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 417 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 10 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 optimist by E. M. Delafield on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The optimist section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The optimist 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 optimist, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
