The Princess and Curdie

Chapter XXII · Chapter 22

Chapter 22 of The Princess and Curdie is here in full — 86 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By George MacDonald • Curated US English Learning Edition

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The Lord Chamberlain At noon the lord chamberlain appeared.

With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

Greeting His Majesty with every appearance of the profoundest respect, and congratulating him on the evident progress he had made, he declared himself sorry to trouble him, but there were certain papers, he said, which required his signature--and therewith drew nearer to the king, who lay looking at him doubtfully.

He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

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LEARNER DICTIONARY

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A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter XXII Reading 1/17

The Princess and Curdie George MacDonald

Chapter XXII

Chapter 22

Chapter 22 of The Princess and Curdie is here in full — 86 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

The Lord Chamberlain At noon the lord chamberlain appeared. With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room. Greeting His Majesty with every appearance of the profoundest respect, and congratulating him on the evident progress he had made, he declared himself sorry to trouble him, but there were certain papers, he said, which required his signature--and therewith drew nearer to the king, who lay looking at him doubtfully. He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears. He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

The Princess and Curdie

Chapter XXII · Chapter 22

Chapter 22 of The Princess and Curdie is here in full — 86 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/17 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

The Lord Chamberlain At noon the lord chamberlain appeared.

Line 2

With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

Line 3

Line 4

He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

Line 5

He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

Learner Dictionary

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.

Thin adjective US /θɪn/

Having little thickness or extent.

From this reading “He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.”

Throat noun US /θroʊt/

The passage at the back of the mouth.

From this reading “He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.”

All words in this reading · 86

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.

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

about

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From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

and

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From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

appearance

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From this reading Greeting His Majesty with every appearance of the profoundest respect, and congratulating him on the evident progress he had made, he declared himself sorry to trouble him, but there were certain papers, he said, which required his signature--and therewith drew nearer to the king, who lay looking at him doubtfully.

appeared

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From this reading The Lord Chamberlain At noon the lord chamberlain appeared.

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From this reading The Lord Chamberlain At noon the lord chamberlain appeared.

back

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From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

bald

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From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

bow

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From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

but

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came

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From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

certain

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Chamberlain

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From this reading The Lord Chamberlain At noon the lord chamberlain appeared.

chin

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From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

congratulating

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craning

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From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

declared

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doubtfully

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drew

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ears

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From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

every

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evident

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Greeting

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had

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hand

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From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

head

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From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

him

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himself

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His

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hooked

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From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

into

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From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

king

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lay

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lean

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From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

long

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From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

looking

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loose

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From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

Lord

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From this reading The Lord Chamberlain At noon the lord chamberlain appeared.

low

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From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

made

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Majesty

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man

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From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

nearer

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neckcloth

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From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

noon

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From this reading The Lord Chamberlain At noon the lord chamberlain appeared.

nose

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From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

out

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

over

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From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

paper

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From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

papers

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profoundest

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progress

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prominent

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From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

quantity

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From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

required

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respect

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room

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From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

said

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signature

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skin

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From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

small

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

softly

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From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

sorry

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stepped

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From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

The

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From this reading The Lord Chamberlain At noon the lord chamberlain appeared.

there

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therewith

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thinadjectiveUS /θɪn/

Having little thickness or extent.

From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

throatnounUS /θroʊt/

The passage at the back of the mouth.

From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

top

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From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

trouble

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tufted

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From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

under

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

very

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had a very thin, prominent, hooked nose, and a quantity of loose skin under his chin and about the throat, which came craning up out of his neckcloth.

was

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

were

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which

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who

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With

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From this reading With a long, low bow, and paper in hand, he stepped softly into the room.

yellow

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From this reading He was a lean, long, yellow man, with a small head, bald over the top, and tufted at the back and about the ears.

Chapter 22 of The Princess and Curdie by George MacDonald holds 86 sentences, grouped into 18 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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.

What does chapter 22 of The Princess and Curdie contain?

Chapter 22 holds 86 sentences of The Princess and Curdie, unabridged, divided into 18 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 22 of The Princess and Curdie by George MacDonald exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 86 sentences, grouped into 18 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.

How do I study chapter 22 of The Princess and Curdie?

Work through the 18 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 18 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.

Can chapter 22 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 22 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.

Questions about reading The Princess and Curdie

Common questions about reading The Princess and Curdie by George MacDonald on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of The Princess and Curdie?

Yes. All 2790 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #709 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of The Princess and Curdie is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #709, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does The Princess and Curdie take to read?

About 232 minutes of reading across 558 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read The Princess and Curdie section by section

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Vocabulary met early in The Princess and Curdie

Words and structures a reader meets early in The Princess and Curdie, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Curdie: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Princess and Curdie; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Peter: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Princess and Curdie; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Miner: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Princess and Curdie; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Lived: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Princess and Curdie; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.

Chapter XXII · Chapter 22

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