Chapter 3 of The Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes — Complete is here in full — 301 sentences across 61 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes — Complete is here in full — 301 sentences across 61 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side. If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
Chapter 3 of The Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes — Complete is here in full — 301 sentences across 61 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/60 · 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.
informal terms for a (young) woman
From this reading “"These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.”
a feeling of grudging admiration and desire to have something that is possessed by another
From this reading “If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"”
plural of “gem” — art highly prized for its beauty or perfection
From this reading “"These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.”
reduce or cause to be reduced from a solid to a liquid state, usually by heating
From this reading “If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"”
past form of “nurture” — help develop, help grow
From this reading “"These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.”
plural of “rim” — the shape of a raised edge of a more or less circular object
From this reading “If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"”
impressive in appearance
From this reading “"These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.”
plural of “sting” — a kind of pain; something as sudden and painful as being stung
From this reading “If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"”
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 If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
the chest considered as the place where secret thoughts are kept
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
possessing or displaying courage; able to face and deal with danger or fear without flinching
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
informal terms for a (young) woman
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
a feeling of grudging admiration and desire to have something that is possessed by another
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
inflected form of “give” — cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
plural of “gem” — art highly prized for its beauty or perfection
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
soft and mild; not harsh or stern or severe
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
coins made of gold
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
reduce or cause to be reduced from a solid to a liquid state, usually by heating
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
past form of “nurture” — help develop, help grow
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
plural of “rim” — the shape of a raised edge of a more or less circular object
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
plural of “son” — a male human offspring
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
impressive in appearance
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
not in physical motion
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
plural of “sting” — a kind of pain; something as sudden and painful as being stung
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
carry out
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
having or prompted by wisdom or discernment
From this reading "These are the gems my children gave," The stately dame replied; "The wise, the gentle, and the brave, I nurtured at my side.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading If envy still your bosom stings, Take back their rims of gold; My sons will melt their wedding-rings, And give a hundred-fold!"
Chapter 3 of The Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes — Complete by Oliver Wendell Holmes holds 301 sentences, grouped into 61 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 3 holds 301 sentences of The Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes — Complete, unabridged, divided into 61 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes — Complete by Oliver Wendell Holmes exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 301 sentences, grouped into 61 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 61 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 61 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 3 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.
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Yes. All 6091 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #7400 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #7400, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 507 minutes of reading across 1219 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes — Complete section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 22 chapters of The Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes — Complete 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 Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes — Complete, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
