Chapter 1 of The Red Tavern is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Red Tavern is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent? Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle. Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor! The stubborn latch balks at speeding the string. Come--come, wake thee, Jock!
Chapter 1 of The Red Tavern is here in full — 169 sentences across 34 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/33 · 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 “balk” — the area on a billiard table behind the balkline
From this reading “The stubborn latch balks at speeding the string.”
deserving a curse; sometimes used as an intensifier
From this reading “Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!”
a flash of light (especially reflected light)
From this reading “Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle.”
a person trained to compete in sports
From this reading “Come--come, wake thee, Jock!”
fasten with a latch
From this reading “The stubborn latch balks at speeding the string.”
changing location rapidly
From this reading “The stubborn latch balks at speeding the string.”
tenaciously unwilling or marked by tenacious unwillingness to yield
From this reading “The stubborn latch balks at speeding the string.”
someone who betrays his country by committing treason
From this reading “Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!”
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 stubborn latch balks at speeding the string.”
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 Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The stubborn latch balks at speeding the string.
(military) an offensive against an enemy (using weapons)
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
plural of “balk” — the area on a billiard table behind the balkline
From this reading The stubborn latch balks at speeding the string.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Come--come, wake thee, Jock!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
deserving a curse; sometimes used as an intensifier
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
(Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
an old form of “does”
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
divisible by two
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
a flash of light (especially reflected light)
From this reading Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent?
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent?
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
a person trained to compete in sports
From this reading Come--come, wake thee, Jock!
fasten with a latch
From this reading The stubborn latch balks at speeding the string.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent?
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent?
have the will and intention to carry out some action
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
the act of playing a musical instrument
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent?
changing location rapidly
From this reading The stubborn latch balks at speeding the string.
a lightweight cord
From this reading The stubborn latch balks at speeding the string.
tenaciously unwilling or marked by tenacious unwillingness to yield
From this reading The stubborn latch balks at speeding the string.
a portable shelter (usually of canvas stretched over supporting poles and fastened to the ground with ropes and pegs)
From this reading See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle.
an old word for “you”, as the object, speaking to one person
From this reading Come--come, wake thee, Jock!
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent?
someone who betrays his country by committing treason
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
plural of “tree” — a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading Methinks I can see between the trees the glimmer of his council-candle.
precisely as stated
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
plural of “voice” — the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent?
be awake, be alert, be there
From this reading Come--come, wake thee, Jock!
an old and formal word for “while”
From this reading Even now he doth plan the attack, whilst this cursed cross-bow is playing the very devil of a traitor!
distant but within sight (“yon” is dialectal)
From this reading See https:// Hearest thou not voices yonder in our lordship's tent?
Chapter 1 of The Red Tavern by C. R. (Charles Raymond) Macauley holds 169 sentences, grouped into 34 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 169 sentences of The Red Tavern, unabridged, divided into 34 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Red Tavern by C. R. (Charles Raymond) Macauley exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 169 sentences, grouped into 34 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 34 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 34 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 Red Tavern by C. R. (Charles Raymond) Macauley on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3929 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #44182 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #44182, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 327 minutes of reading across 786 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Red Tavern section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 27 chapters of The Red Tavern 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 Red Tavern, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
