Chapter 15 of The Prose Tales of Alexander Pushkin is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of The Prose Tales of Alexander Pushkin is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The funeral took place the third day. The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles. The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse. Vladimir and the servants raised the coffin. The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.
Chapter 15 of The Prose Tales of Alexander Pushkin is here in full — 116 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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 “candle” — stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading “The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.”
the act of singing in a monotonous tone
From this reading “The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.”
box in which a corpse is buried or cremated
From this reading “The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.”
the dead body of a human being
From this reading “The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.”
plural of “domestic” — a servant who is paid to perform menial tasks around the household
From this reading “The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.”
a ceremony at which a dead person is buried or cremated
From this reading “The funeral took place the third day.”
plural of “prayer” — the act of communicating with a deity (especially as a petition or in adoration or contrition or thanksgiving)
From this reading “The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.”
cover as if with a shroud
From this reading “The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.”
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 “The funeral took place the third day.”
a man who is very old
In this reading “The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.”
at or in the front
In this reading “The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.”
put in effect
In this reading “The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.”
In this reading “The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.”
come to pass
In this reading “The funeral took place the third day.”
keep or lay aside for future use
In this reading “The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.”
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 The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
the entire physical structure of an organism (an animal, plant, or human being)
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
plural of “candle” — stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body
From this reading The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.
the act of singing in a monotonous tone
From this reading The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.
an employee who performs clerical work (e.g., keeps records or accounts)
From this reading The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.
box in which a corpse is buried or cremated
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
the dead body of a human being
From this reading The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.
overlaid or spread or topped with or enclosed within something; sometimes used as a combining form
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading The funeral took place the third day.
no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life
From this reading The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.
a room used for dining
From this reading The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.
plural of “domestic” — a servant who is paid to perform menial tasks around the household
From this reading The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.
(usually followed by “with” or used as a combining form) generously supplied with
From this reading The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.
past form of “follow” — to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.
the side that is forward or prominent
From this reading The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.
a ceremony at which a dead person is buried or cremated
From this reading The funeral took place the third day.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading The funeral took place the third day.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
plural of “prayer” — the act of communicating with a deity (especially as a petition or in adoration or contrition or thanksgiving)
From this reading The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.
a clergyman in Christian churches who has the authority to perform or administer various religious rites; one of the Holy Orders
From this reading The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.
located or moved above the surround or above the normal position
From this reading Vladimir and the servants raised the coffin.
completely prepared or in condition for immediate action or use or progress
From this reading The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.
plural of “servant” — a person working in the service of another (especially in the household)
From this reading Vladimir and the servants raised the coffin.
cover as if with a shroud
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
confined on all sides
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The funeral took place the third day.
one of three equal parts of a divisible whole
From this reading The funeral took place the third day.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading The funeral took place the third day.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Vladimir and the servants raised the coffin.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The dining-room was filled with domestics, ready to carry out the corpse.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading The priest went in front, followed by the clerk, chanting the prayers for the dead.
in the company of; together with
From this reading The body of the poor old man lay in the coffin, covered with a shroud and surrounded by candles.
Chapter 15 of The Prose Tales of Alexander Pushkin by Aleksandr Sergeevich Pushkin holds 116 sentences, grouped into 24 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 15 holds 116 sentences of The Prose Tales of Alexander Pushkin, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of The Prose Tales of Alexander Pushkin by Aleksandr Sergeevich Pushkin exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 116 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 15 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 Prose Tales of Alexander Pushkin by Aleksandr Sergeevich Pushkin on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7538 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #55219 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #55219, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1508 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Prose Tales of Alexander Pushkin section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Prose Tales of Alexander Pushkin 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 Prose Tales of Alexander Pushkin, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
