Chapter 6 of The Pursuit of the House-Boat is here in full — 182 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of The Pursuit of the House-Boat is here in full — 182 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder. “That Watteau isn’t bad, either, is it, now?” “No,” remarked Calpurnia. “I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?” “Very nicely,” said Elizabeth.
Chapter 6 of The Pursuit of the House-Boat is here in full — 182 sentences across 37 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/36 · 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.
wool of the alpaca
From this reading ““I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?””
according with custom or propriety
From this reading ““I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.”
(Greek mythology) a prophetess in Troy during the Trojan War whose predictions were true but were never believed
From this reading ““I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.”
possessive form of “cleopatra” — beautiful and charismatic queen of Egypt; mistress of Julius Caesar and later of Mark Antony; killed herself to avoid capture by Octavian (69-30 BC)
daughter of George VI who became the Queen of England and Northern Ireland in 1952 on the death of her father (1926-)
From this reading ““Very nicely,” said Elizabeth.”
in a nice way
From this reading ““Very nicely,” said Elizabeth.”
past form of “remark” — make mention of
From this reading ““No,” remarked Calpurnia.”
lift onto one's shoulders
From this reading ““I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.”
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 “I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?”
wool of the alpaca
From this reading “I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading “I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?”
having undesirable or negative qualities
From this reading “That Watteau isn’t bad, either, is it, now?”
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
according with custom or propriety
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
of the color intermediate between green and violet; having a color similar to that of a clear unclouded sky
From this reading “I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “No,” remarked Calpurnia.
(Greek mythology) a prophetess in Troy during the Trojan War whose predictions were true but were never believed
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
possessive form of “cleopatra” — beautiful and charismatic queen of Egypt; mistress of Julius Caesar and later of Mark Antony; killed herself to avoid capture by Octavian (69-30 BC)
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
one or the other of two
From this reading “That Watteau isn’t bad, either, is it, now?”
daughter of George VI who became the Queen of England and Northern Ireland in 1952 on the death of her father (1926-)
From this reading “Very nicely,” said Elizabeth.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading “I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?”
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “That Watteau isn’t bad, either, is it, now?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “That Watteau isn’t bad, either, is it, now?”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “That Watteau isn’t bad, either, is it, now?”
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading “I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?”
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?”
in a nice way
From this reading “Very nicely,” said Elizabeth.
not any; not one
From this reading “No,” remarked Calpurnia.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “That Watteau isn’t bad, either, is it, now?”
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
above and across; more than
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
past form of “remark” — make mention of
From this reading “No,” remarked Calpurnia.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “Very nicely,” said Elizabeth.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
lift onto one's shoulders
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
having a supporting base
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “That Watteau isn’t bad, either, is it, now?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
precisely as stated
From this reading “I should think they’d be very becoming,” put in Cassandra, standing on her tip-toes and looking over Cleopatra’s shoulder.
French painter (1684-1721)
From this reading “That Watteau isn’t bad, either, is it, now?”
the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
From this reading “I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?”
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading “I wonder how a Watteau back like that would go on my blue alpaca?”
Chapter 6 of The Pursuit of the House-Boat by John Kendrick Bangs holds 182 sentences, grouped into 37 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.
Chapter 6 holds 182 sentences of The Pursuit of the House-Boat, unabridged, divided into 37 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of The Pursuit of the House-Boat by John Kendrick Bangs exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 182 sentences, grouped into 37 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 37 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 37 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 6 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 Pursuit of the House-Boat by John Kendrick Bangs on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1779 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3169 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3169, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 148 minutes of reading across 356 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Pursuit of the House-Boat section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 10 chapters of The Pursuit of the House-Boat 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 Pursuit of the House-Boat, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
