Chapter 8 of The Poniard's Hilt is here in full — 80 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Poniard's Hilt is here in full — 80 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE DEMONS! THE DEMONS! What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery? What were they engaged in? They were emptying cup upon cup.
Chapter 8 of The Poniard's Hilt is here in full — 80 sentences across 16 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/16 · 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.
the event of one object coming closer to another
From this reading “What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?”
plural of “demon” — an evil supernatural being
From this reading “THE DEMONS!”
of or associated with a church (especially a Christian Church)
From this reading “What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?”
the act of removing the contents of something
From this reading “They were emptying cup upon cup.”
spectators at a golf or tennis match
From this reading “What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?”
a senior clergyman and dignitary
From this reading “What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?”
under the level of the ground
From this reading “What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?”
Mexican revolutionary leader (1877-1923)
From this reading “What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?”
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.
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
the event of one object coming closer to another
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
determine the number or amount of
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
a small open container usually used for drinking; usually has a handle
From this reading They were emptying cup upon cup.
plural of “demon” — an evil supernatural being
From this reading THE DEMONS!
of or associated with a church (especially a Christian Church)
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
the act of removing the contents of something
From this reading They were emptying cup upon cup.
having ones attention or mind or energy engaged
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
spectators at a golf or tennis match
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
a senior clergyman and dignitary
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE DEMONS!
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading What were they engaged in?
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
under the level of the ground
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
a formal word for “on”
From this reading They were emptying cup upon cup.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
Mexican revolutionary leader (1877-1923)
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
during the time that
From this reading What were the prelate and the count engaged in while the Vagres were approaching the ecclesiastical villa through the underground gallery?
Chapter 8 of The Poniard's Hilt by Eugène Sue holds 80 sentences, grouped into 16 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 8 holds 80 sentences of The Poniard's Hilt, unabridged, divided into 16 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Poniard's Hilt by Eugène Sue exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 80 sentences, grouped into 16 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 16 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 16 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 8 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 Poniard's Hilt by Eugène Sue on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4966 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #31782 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #31782, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 413 minutes of reading across 994 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Poniard's Hilt section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 27 chapters of The Poniard's Hilt 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 Poniard's Hilt, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
