Chapter 5 of The Oxford Book of Ballads is here in full — 14 sentences across 3 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of The Oxford Book of Ballads is here in full — 14 sentences across 3 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
112. Robyn and Gandelyn 462 113. The Birth of Robin Hood 465 114. Adam Bell, Clym of the Clough, and William of Clondesley 468 115. A Little Geste of Robin Hood and his Meiny 497 116.
Chapter 5 of The Oxford Book of Ballads is here in full — 14 sentences across 3 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/2 · 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.
(Old Testament) in Judeo-Christian mythology; the first man and the husband of Eve and the progenitor of the human race
From this reading “Adam Bell, Clym of the Clough, and William of Clondesley 468 115.”
a hollow device made of metal that makes a ringing sound when struck
From this reading “Adam Bell, Clym of the Clough, and William of Clondesley 468 115.”
the time when something begins (especially life)
From this reading “The Birth of Robin Hood 465 114.”
an aggressive and violent young criminal
From this reading “The Birth of Robin Hood 465 114.”
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “A Little Geste of Robin Hood and his Meiny 497 116.”
small Old World songbird with a reddish breast
From this reading “The Birth of Robin Hood 465 114.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 112.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Robyn and Gandelyn 462 113.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Birth of Robin Hood 465 114.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Adam Bell, Clym of the Clough, and William of Clondesley 468 115.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A Little Geste of Robin Hood and his Meiny 497 116.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Robyn and Gandelyn 462 113.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Birth of Robin Hood 465 114.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Adam Bell, Clym of the Clough, and William of Clondesley 468 115.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A Little Geste of Robin Hood and his Meiny 497 116.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading A Little Geste of Robin Hood and his Meiny 497 116.
(Old Testament) in Judeo-Christian mythology; the first man and the husband of Eve and the progenitor of the human race
From this reading Adam Bell, Clym of the Clough, and William of Clondesley 468 115.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Robyn and Gandelyn 462 113.
a hollow device made of metal that makes a ringing sound when struck
From this reading Adam Bell, Clym of the Clough, and William of Clondesley 468 115.
the time when something begins (especially life)
From this reading The Birth of Robin Hood 465 114.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Adam Bell, Clym of the Clough, and William of Clondesley 468 115.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Adam Bell, Clym of the Clough, and William of Clondesley 468 115.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Adam Bell, Clym of the Clough, and William of Clondesley 468 115.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Robyn and Gandelyn 462 113.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A Little Geste of Robin Hood and his Meiny 497 116.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading A Little Geste of Robin Hood and his Meiny 497 116.
an aggressive and violent young criminal
From this reading The Birth of Robin Hood 465 114.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading A Little Geste of Robin Hood and his Meiny 497 116.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A Little Geste of Robin Hood and his Meiny 497 116.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The Birth of Robin Hood 465 114.
small Old World songbird with a reddish breast
From this reading The Birth of Robin Hood 465 114.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Robyn and Gandelyn 462 113.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The Birth of Robin Hood 465 114.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Adam Bell, Clym of the Clough, and William of Clondesley 468 115.
Chapter 5 of The Oxford Book of Ballads by Arthur [Editor] Quiller-Couch holds 14 sentences, grouped into 3 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 5 holds 14 sentences of The Oxford Book of Ballads, unabridged, divided into 3 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of The Oxford Book of Ballads by Arthur [Editor] Quiller-Couch exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 14 sentences, grouped into 3 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 3 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 3 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 5 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 Oxford Book of Ballads by Arthur [Editor] Quiller-Couch on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7181 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #44593 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #44593, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 598 minutes of reading across 1437 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Oxford Book of Ballads section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of The Oxford Book of Ballads 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 Oxford Book of Ballads, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
