Chapter 20 of The Princess Casamassima: A Novel is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XX
Chapter 20 of The Princess Casamassima: A Novel is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.” “He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince. “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.” “If they have turned him out, then, that is very well. Now, if only some one could turn _them_ out!”
Chapter 20 of The Princess Casamassima: A Novel is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
plural of “bookbinder” — a worker whose trade is binding books
From this reading ““He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.”
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading ““Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.””
plural of “chemist” — a scientist who specializes in chemistry
From this reading ““He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.”
make happy or satisfied
From this reading ““Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.””
plural of “month” — one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading ““I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.””
a male member of a royal family other than the sovereign (especially the son of a sovereign)
From this reading ““He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.”
change orientation or direction, also in the abstract sense
From this reading “Now, if only some one could turn _them_ out!””
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading ““Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.””
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading “I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.”
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.
plural of “bookbinder” — a worker whose trade is binding books
From this reading “He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.”
plural of “chemist” — a scientist who specializes in chemistry
From this reading “He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Now, if only some one could turn _them_ out!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.”
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.”
make happy or satisfied
From this reading “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.”
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “If they have turned him out, then, that is very well.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.”
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “If they have turned him out, then, that is very well.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “If they have turned him out, then, that is very well.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.”
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.”
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.
plural of “month” — one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading “I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.”
not one thing; not anything
From this reading “I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.”
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Now, if only some one could turn _them_ out!”
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Now, if only some one could turn _them_ out!”
and nothing more
From this reading Now, if only some one could turn _them_ out!”
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading “If they have turned him out, then, that is very well.
a male member of a royal family other than the sovereign (especially the son of a sovereign)
From this reading “He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading “I haven’t seen him for months, and know nothing about him.”
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading Now, if only some one could turn _them_ out!”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “If they have turned him out, then, that is very well.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “He doesn’t like the chemists and the bookbinders, eh?” asked the Prince.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.”
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading “If they have turned him out, then, that is very well.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “If they have turned him out, then, that is very well.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.”
change orientation or direction, also in the abstract sense
From this reading Now, if only some one could turn _them_ out!”
moved around an axis or center
From this reading “If they have turned him out, then, that is very well.
precisely as stated
From this reading “If they have turned him out, then, that is very well.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.”
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading “If they have turned him out, then, that is very well.
which person or people
From this reading “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.”
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.”
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “Ah, it was he who first brought them—to gratify your wife.”
Chapter 20 of The Princess Casamassima: A Novel by Henry James holds 418 sentences, grouped into 84 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 20 holds 418 sentences of The Princess Casamassima: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 20 of The Princess Casamassima: A Novel by Henry James exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 418 sentences, grouped into 84 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 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 84 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 20 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 Princess Casamassima: A Novel by Henry James on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9200 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #64599 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #64599, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1840 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Princess Casamassima: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of The Princess Casamassima: A Novel 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 Princess Casamassima: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
