Chapter 12 of The Quality of Mercy is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of The Quality of Mercy is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"I should think she would detest him." "She doesn't. She's quite as proud of him as he is of her. It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore." "I can't understand you," said Louise, leaving him to his letter.
Chapter 12 of The Quality of Mercy is here in full — 416 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.
arousing affect
From this reading “It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."”
cause to be bored
From this reading “It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."”
dislike intensely; feel antipathy or aversion towards
From this reading “"I should think she would detest him."”
feelings of ardent love
From this reading “It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."”
the act of departing
From this reading “"I can't understand you," said Louise, leaving him to his letter.”
feeling self-respect or pleasure in something by which you measure your self-worth; or being a reason for pride
From this reading “She's quite as proud of him as he is of her.”
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading “"I can't understand you," said Louise, leaving him to his letter.”
someone who sees an event and reports what happened
From this reading “It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."”
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 before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
arousing affect
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading She's quite as proud of him as he is of her.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
cause to be bored
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I can't understand you," said Louise, leaving him to his letter.
dislike intensely; feel antipathy or aversion towards
From this reading "I should think she would detest him."
feelings of ardent love
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "She doesn't.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She's quite as proud of him as he is of her.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She's quite as proud of him as he is of her.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "I should think she would detest him."
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "I can't understand you," said Louise, leaving him to his letter.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I should think she would detest him."
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading She's quite as proud of him as he is of her.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
the act of departing
From this reading "I can't understand you," said Louise, leaving him to his letter.
a written message addressed to a person or organization
From this reading "I can't understand you," said Louise, leaving him to his letter.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I can't understand you," said Louise, leaving him to his letter.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading She's quite as proud of him as he is of her.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
feeling self-respect or pleasure in something by which you measure your self-worth; or being a reason for pride
From this reading She's quite as proud of him as he is of her.
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading She's quite as proud of him as he is of her.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I can't understand you," said Louise, leaving him to his letter.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I should think she would detest him."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She's quite as proud of him as he is of her.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading "I should think she would detest him."
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading "I should think she would detest him."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
From this reading "I can't understand you," said Louise, leaving him to his letter.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
someone who sees an event and reports what happened
From this reading It's affecting to witness their devotion--or it would be if it were not such a bore."
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading "I should think she would detest him."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I can't understand you," said Louise, leaving him to his letter.
Chapter 12 of The Quality of Mercy by William Dean Howells holds 416 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 12 holds 416 sentences of The Quality of Mercy, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of The Quality of Mercy by William Dean Howells exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 416 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 12 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 Quality of Mercy by William Dean Howells on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6684 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30108 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30108, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 557 minutes of reading across 1337 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Quality of Mercy section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 16 chapters of The Quality of Mercy 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 Quality of Mercy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
