Chapter 11 of The Penalty is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XI
Chapter 11 of The Penalty is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town. Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience. He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul. A few days in the country had worked wonders for her. Her skin had browned a little, and her cheeks were crimson.
Chapter 11 of The Penalty is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 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.
a storm with widespread snowfall accompanied by strong winds
From this reading “Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.”
(of skin) deeply suntanned
From this reading “Her skin had browned a little, and her cheeks were crimson.”
an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
From this reading “He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.”
becoming dark or darker as from waning light or clouding over
From this reading “He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.”
of a dreadful kind
From this reading “Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.”
assets that are saleable though not material or physical
From this reading “He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.”
plural of “meeting” — a formally arranged gathering
From this reading “Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.”
plural of “wonder” — the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
From this reading “A few days in the country had worked wonders for her.”
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 before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading A few days in the country had worked wonders for her.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.
a storm with widespread snowfall accompanied by strong winds
From this reading Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.
(of skin) deeply suntanned
From this reading Her skin had browned a little, and her cheeks were crimson.
an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
From this reading He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.
plural of “cheek” — either side of the face below the eyes
From this reading Her skin had browned a little, and her cheeks were crimson.
motivation deriving logically from ethical or moral principles that govern a person's thoughts and actions
From this reading Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.
a politically organized body of people under a single government
From this reading A few days in the country had worked wonders for her.
of a color at the end of the color spectrum (next to orange); resembling the color of blood or cherries or tomatoes or rubies
From this reading Her skin had browned a little, and her cheeks were crimson.
becoming dark or darker as from waning light or clouding over
From this reading He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.
the time during which someone's life continues
From this reading A few days in the country had worked wonders for her.
greatly pleased
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading A few days in the country had worked wonders for her.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading A few days in the country had worked wonders for her.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.
of a dreadful kind
From this reading Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading A few days in the country had worked wonders for her.
assets that are saleable though not material or physical
From this reading He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.
gain knowledge or skills
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading Her skin had browned a little, and her cheeks were crimson.
plural of “meeting” — a formally arranged gathering
From this reading Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.
The element of a person that enables awareness and thought.
From this reading Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.
a natural protective body covering and site of the sense of touch
From this reading Her skin had browned a little, and her cheeks were crimson.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.
the immaterial part of a person; the actuating cause of an individual life
From this reading He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading A few days in the country had worked wonders for her.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
an urban area with a fixed boundary that is smaller than a city
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
not clearly expressed or understood
From this reading He had dreaded some vague calamity--some intangible darkening of his darling's soul.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Her skin had browned a little, and her cheeks were crimson.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Her meetings with Blizzard had been horribly on his mind and conscience.
plural of “wonder” — the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
From this reading A few days in the country had worked wonders for her.
past form of “work” — exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading A few days in the country had worked wonders for her.
being four more than thirty
From this reading XXXIV Dr. Ferris was delighted to learn that Barbara had left town.
Chapter 11 of The Penalty by Gouverneur Morris holds 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 11 holds 406 sentences of The Penalty, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of The Penalty by Gouverneur Morris exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 11 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 Penalty by Gouverneur Morris on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5676 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #12557 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #12557, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 473 minutes of reading across 1136 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Penalty section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 14 chapters of The Penalty 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 Penalty, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
