Chapter 18 of The Personal History of David Copperfield is here in full — 479 sentences across 96 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of The Personal History of David Copperfield is here in full — 479 sentences across 96 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
ANOTHER RETROSPECT. Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life. Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession. Weeks, months, seasons, pass along. They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.
Chapter 18 of The Personal History of David Copperfield is here in full — 479 sentences across 96 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/95 · 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.
occurring with or following as a consequence
From this reading “Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.”
lacking in light; not bright or harsh
From this reading “Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.”
worth remembering
From this reading “Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.”
an amount of time
From this reading “Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.”
plural of “phantom” — a ghostly appearing figure
From this reading “Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.”
(theology) the origination of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost
From this reading “Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.”
contemplation of things past
From this reading “ANOTHER RETROSPECT.”
plural of “season” — a period of the year marked by special events or activities in some field
From this reading “Weeks, months, seasons, pass along.”
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 “Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.”
In this reading “They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.”
In this reading “They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.”
transmit information
In this reading “Weeks, months, seasons, pass along.”
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 Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
occurring with or following as a consequence
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
anew
From this reading Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
following the length of something from one end toward the other
From this reading Weeks, months, seasons, pass along.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading ANOTHER RETROSPECT.
on or to one side
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.
the time during which someone's life continues
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
lacking in light; not bright or harsh
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
worth remembering
From this reading Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
plural of “month” — one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading Weeks, months, seasons, pass along.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
on one occasion
From this reading Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
go across or through
From this reading Weeks, months, seasons, pass along.
a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something
From this reading Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
an amount of time
From this reading Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
plural of “phantom” — a ghostly appearing figure
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
(theology) the origination of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
contemplation of things past
From this reading ANOTHER RETROSPECT.
plural of “season” — a period of the year marked by special events or activities in some field
From this reading Weeks, months, seasons, pass along.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.
A dark area or shape produced by a body coming between rays of light and a surface.
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
be standing; be upright
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
the warmest season of the year; in the northern hemisphere it extends from the summer solstice to the autumnal equinox
From this reading They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Let me stand aside, to see the phantoms of those days go by me, accompanying the shadow of myself, in dim procession.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading Once again, let me pause upon a memorable period of my life.
plural of “week” — any period of seven consecutive days
From this reading Weeks, months, seasons, pass along.
the coldest season of the year; in the northern hemisphere it extends from the winter solstice to the vernal equinox
From this reading They seem little more than a summer day and a winter evening.
Chapter 18 of The Personal History of David Copperfield by Charles Dickens holds 479 sentences, grouped into 96 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 18 holds 479 sentences of The Personal History of David Copperfield, unabridged, divided into 96 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of The Personal History of David Copperfield by Charles Dickens exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 479 sentences, grouped into 96 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 96 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 96 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 18 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 Personal History of David Copperfield by Charles Dickens on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 18363 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #43111 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #43111, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 3673 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in The Personal History of David Copperfield, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
