Chapter 21 of The Plumed Serpent is here in full — 426 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXI
Chapter 21 of The Plumed Serpent is here in full — 426 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Quien sabe?” said Kate. “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good. So I make a fool of myself. They are sure they are always good, so that makes monkeys of them. Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!”
Chapter 21 of The Plumed Serpent is here in full — 426 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/85 · 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.
exhale hard
From this reading “Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!””
an explosive device fused to explode under specific conditions
From this reading “Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!””
a person who lacks good judgment
From this reading “So I make a fool of myself.”
plural of “make” — a recognizable kind
From this reading “They are sure they are always good, so that makes monkeys of them.”
plural of “monkey” — any of various long-tailed primates (excluding the prosimians)
From this reading “They are sure they are always good, so that makes monkeys of them.”
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading “So I make a fool of myself.”
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading ““One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.”
plural of “want” — a state of extreme poverty
From this reading ““One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.”
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 “So I make a fool of myself.”
cause to burst with a violent release of energy
In this reading “Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!””
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 So I make a fool of myself.
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading They are sure they are always good, so that makes monkeys of them.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading They are sure they are always good, so that makes monkeys of them.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.
exhale hard
From this reading Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!”
an explosive device fused to explode under specific conditions
From this reading Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!”
a person who lacks good judgment
From this reading So I make a fool of myself.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading So I make a fool of myself.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!”
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Quien sabe?” said Kate.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!”
engage in
From this reading So I make a fool of myself.
plural of “make” — a recognizable kind
From this reading They are sure they are always good, so that makes monkeys of them.
plural of “monkey” — any of various long-tailed primates (excluding the prosimians)
From this reading They are sure they are always good, so that makes monkeys of them.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading So I make a fool of myself.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading So I make a fool of myself.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!”
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.
and nothing more
From this reading Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!”
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Quien sabe?” said Kate.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Quien sabe?” said Kate.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Quien sabe?” said Kate.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading So I make a fool of myself.
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading They are sure they are always good, so that makes monkeys of them.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading They are sure they are always good, so that makes monkeys of them.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They are sure they are always good, so that makes monkeys of them.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!”
plural of “want” — a state of extreme poverty
From this reading “One wants to be good, and the other is sure he is good.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!”
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Oh, if only the world would blow up like a bomb!”
Chapter 21 of The Plumed Serpent by D. H. (David Herbert) Lawrence holds 426 sentences, grouped into 86 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 21 holds 426 sentences of The Plumed Serpent, unabridged, divided into 86 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 21 of The Plumed Serpent by D. H. (David Herbert) Lawrence exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 426 sentences, grouped into 86 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 86 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 86 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 21 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 Plumed Serpent by D. H. (David Herbert) Lawrence on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 13514 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #73677 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #73677, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2703 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Plumed Serpent section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of The Plumed Serpent 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 Plumed Serpent, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
