Chapter 1 of The rasp is here in full — 5 sentences across 1 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The rasp is here in full — 5 sentences across 1 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin. · · · · “Who’ll dig his Grave?” “I,” said the Owl, “With my little Trowel; I’ll dig his Grave.” · · · · “Who _killed_ Cock Robin?” “I,” said the Sparrow, “With my Bow and Arrow, _I_ killed Cock Robin!”
Chapter 1 of The rasp is here in full — 5 sentences across 1 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/1 · 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.
a mark to indicate a direction or relation
From this reading ““I,” said the Sparrow, “With my Bow and Arrow, _I_ killed Cock Robin!””
a knot with two loops and loose ends; used to tie shoelaces
From this reading ““I,” said the Sparrow, “With my Bow and Arrow, _I_ killed Cock Robin!””
tilt or slant to one side
From this reading “All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.”
turn up, loosen, or remove earth
From this reading “· · · · “Who’ll dig his Grave?””
nocturnal bird of prey with hawk-like beak and claws and large head with front-facing eyes
From this reading ““I,” said the Owl, “With my little Trowel; I’ll dig his Grave.””
small Old World songbird with a reddish breast
From this reading “All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.”
any of several small dull-colored singing birds feeding on seeds or insects
From this reading ““I,” said the Sparrow, “With my Bow and Arrow, _I_ killed Cock Robin!””
a small hand tool with a handle and flat metal blade; used for scooping or spreading plaster or similar materials
From this reading ““I,” said the Owl, “With my little Trowel; I’ll dig his Grave.””
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
a mark to indicate a direction or relation
From this reading “I,” said the Sparrow, “With my Bow and Arrow, _I_ killed Cock Robin!”
plural of “bird” — warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrates characterized by feathers and forelimbs modified as wings
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
a knot with two loops and loose ends; used to tie shoelaces
From this reading “I,” said the Sparrow, “With my Bow and Arrow, _I_ killed Cock Robin!”
tilt or slant to one side
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
turn up, loosen, or remove earth
From this reading · · · · “Who’ll dig his Grave?”
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
death of a person
From this reading · · · · “Who’ll dig his Grave?”
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading · · · · “Who’ll dig his Grave?”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I,” said the Owl, “With my little Trowel; I’ll dig his Grave.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I,” said the Owl, “With my little Trowel; I’ll dig his Grave.”
past form of “kill” — cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly
From this reading · · · · “Who _killed_ Cock Robin?”
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “I,” said the Owl, “With my little Trowel; I’ll dig his Grave.”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “I,” said the Owl, “With my little Trowel; I’ll dig his Grave.”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
nocturnal bird of prey with hawk-like beak and claws and large head with front-facing eyes
From this reading “I,” said the Owl, “With my little Trowel; I’ll dig his Grave.”
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
small Old World songbird with a reddish breast
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “I,” said the Owl, “With my little Trowel; I’ll dig his Grave.”
any of several small dull-colored singing birds feeding on seeds or insects
From this reading “I,” said the Sparrow, “With my Bow and Arrow, _I_ killed Cock Robin!”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
a small hand tool with a handle and flat metal blade; used for scooping or spreading plaster or similar materials
From this reading “I,” said the Owl, “With my little Trowel; I’ll dig his Grave.”
at the time that
From this reading All the Birds of the Air Fell a-sighin’ and a-sobbin’ When they heard of the death Of poor Cock Robin.
which person or people
From this reading · · · · “Who _killed_ Cock Robin?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading · · · · “Who’ll dig his Grave?”
in the company of; together with
From this reading “I,” said the Owl, “With my little Trowel; I’ll dig his Grave.”
Chapter 1 of The rasp by Philip MacDonald holds 5 sentences, grouped into 1 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 1 holds 5 sentences of The rasp, unabridged, divided into 1 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The rasp by Philip MacDonald exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 5 sentences, grouped into 1 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 1 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 1 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 1 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 rasp by Philip MacDonald on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6595 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #72462 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #72462, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 549 minutes of reading across 1319 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The rasp section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 19 chapters of The rasp 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 rasp, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
