Chapter 13 of The Penalty is here in full — 398 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIII
Chapter 13 of The Penalty is here in full — 398 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid. The woman shook her head. "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?" "Nothing solid. That's the doctor's orders."
Chapter 13 of The Penalty is here in full — 398 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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.
in mental comfort; without stress
From this reading “"If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"”
possessive form of “doctor” — a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading “That's the doctor's orders."”
plural of “order” — (often plural) a command given by a superior (e.g., a military or law enforcement officer) that must be obeyed
From this reading “That's the doctor's orders."”
like better; value more highly
From this reading “After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.”
characterized by good substantial quality
From this reading “After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.”
liquid food especially of meat or fish or vegetable stock often containing pieces of solid food
From this reading “After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.”
plural of “spoonful” — as much as a spoon will hold
From this reading “After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.”
past form of “suggest” — make a proposal, declare a plan for something
From this reading “After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.”
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 After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
later than; following
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
possessing life
From this reading "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"
in mental comfort; without stress
From this reading "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"
possessive form of “doctor” — a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading That's the doctor's orders."
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading The woman shook her head.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading The woman shook her head.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"
(especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded
From this reading "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"
not one thing; not anything
From this reading "Nothing solid.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
plural of “order” — (often plural) a command given by a superior (e.g., a military or law enforcement officer) that must be obeyed
From this reading That's the doctor's orders."
in a petulant manner
From this reading "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"
like better; value more highly
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"
a disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipment
From this reading The woman shook her head.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
characterized by good substantial quality
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
liquid food especially of meat or fish or vegetable stock often containing pieces of solid food
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
plural of “spoonful” — as much as a spoon will hold
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
past form of “suggest” — make a proposal, declare a plan for something
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading That's the doctor's orders."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "If I'm to be kept alive," he said petulantly, "why not comfortably?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading After a few spoonfuls of the soup, Wilmot suggested that he should prefer something solid.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading The woman shook her head.
Chapter 13 of The Penalty by Gouverneur Morris holds 398 sentences, grouped into 80 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 13 holds 398 sentences of The Penalty, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 13 of The Penalty by Gouverneur Morris exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 398 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 13 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.
