Chapter 4 of The Orchid is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Orchid is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Not quite so much--assured." "Exactly. And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying." They gazed at each other mutely. "We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.
Chapter 4 of The Orchid is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
marked by assurance; exhibiting confidence
From this reading “"Not quite so much--assured."”
plural of “beggar” — a pauper who lives by begging
From this reading “"We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.”
plural of “character” — an imaginary person represented in a work of fiction (play or film or story)
From this reading “And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."”
having or displaying warmth or affection
From this reading “And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."”
past form of “gaze” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading “They gazed at each other mutely.”
possessive form of “james” — a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading “And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."”
past form of “resume” — take up or begin anew
From this reading “"We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.”
plural of “taste” — the sensation that results when taste buds in the tongue and throat convey information about the chemical composition of a soluble stimulus
From this reading “"We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.”
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.
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."
marked by assurance; exhibiting confidence
From this reading "Not quite so much--assured."
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading They gazed at each other mutely.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.
plural of “beggar” — a pauper who lives by begging
From this reading "We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.
plural of “character” — an imaginary person represented in a work of fiction (play or film or story)
From this reading And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading They gazed at each other mutely.
indicating exactness or preciseness
From this reading "Exactly.
having or displaying warmth or affection
From this reading And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."
past form of “gaze” — look at with fixed eyes
From this reading They gazed at each other mutely.
a unit of inductance in which an induced electromotive force of one volt is produced when the current is varied at the rate of one ampere per second
From this reading And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."
possessive form of “james” — a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."
to a great degree or extent
From this reading "Not quite so much--assured."
without speaking
From this reading They gazed at each other mutely.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "Not quite so much--assured."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading They gazed at each other mutely.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading "We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading "Not quite so much--assured."
past form of “resume” — take up or begin anew
From this reading "We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.
a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations
From this reading And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading "We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "Not quite so much--assured."
plural of “taste” — the sensation that results when taste buds in the tongue and throat convey information about the chemical composition of a soluble stimulus
From this reading "We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.
in or at that place or location
From this reading And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They gazed at each other mutely.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "We should be beggars with our tastes," she resumed.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading And there you are!--as Henry James's characters are so fond of saying."
Chapter 4 of The Orchid by Robert Grant holds 405 sentences, grouped into 81 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 4 holds 405 sentences of The Orchid, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Orchid by Robert Grant exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 405 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 4 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 Orchid by Robert Grant on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1694 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #53711 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #53711, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 141 minutes of reading across 339 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Orchid section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of The Orchid 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 Orchid, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
