Chapter 8 of The Return is here in full — 197 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of The Return is here in full — 197 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
He left the common. A lamplighter was lighting the lamps. A thin evening haze was on the air. If only he had stayed at home that fateful afternoon! Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?
Chapter 8 of The Return is here in full — 197 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
past form of “entice” — provoke someone to do something through (often false or exaggerated) promises or persuasion
From this reading “Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?”
having momentous consequences; of decisive importance
From this reading “If only he had stayed at home that fateful afternoon!”
atmospheric moisture or dust or smoke that causes reduced visibility
From this reading “A thin evening haze was on the air.”
brought about or caused; not spontaneous
From this reading “Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?”
(when gas was used for streetlights) a person who lights and extinguishes streetlights
From this reading “A lamplighter was lighting the lamps.”
plural of “lamp” — an artificial source of visible illumination
From this reading “A lamplighter was lighting the lamps.”
having abundant light or illumination
From this reading “A lamplighter was lighting the lamps.”
any venturesome undertaking especially one with an uncertain outcome
From this reading “Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?”
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 A lamplighter was lighting the lamps.
the part of the day between noon and evening
From this reading If only he had stayed at home that fateful afternoon!
a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of
From this reading A thin evening haze was on the air.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading If only he had stayed at home that fateful afternoon!
belonging to or participated in by a community as a whole; public
From this reading He left the common.
past form of “entice” — provoke someone to do something through (often false or exaggerated) promises or persuasion
From this reading Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading A thin evening haze was on the air.
having momentous consequences; of decisive importance
From this reading If only he had stayed at home that fateful afternoon!
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading If only he had stayed at home that fateful afternoon!
atmospheric moisture or dust or smoke that causes reduced visibility
From this reading A thin evening haze was on the air.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He left the common.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?
where you live at a particular time
From this reading If only he had stayed at home that fateful afternoon!
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If only he had stayed at home that fateful afternoon!
brought about or caused; not spontaneous
From this reading Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?
(when gas was used for streetlights) a person who lights and extinguishes streetlights
From this reading A lamplighter was lighting the lamps.
plural of “lamp” — an artificial source of visible illumination
From this reading A lamplighter was lighting the lamps.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading He left the common.
having abundant light or illumination
From this reading A lamplighter was lighting the lamps.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading A thin evening haze was on the air.
and nothing more
From this reading If only he had stayed at home that fateful afternoon!
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?
past form of “stay” — stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading If only he had stayed at home that fateful afternoon!
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading If only he had stayed at home that fateful afternoon!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He left the common.
Having little thickness or extent.
From this reading A thin evening haze was on the air.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?
any venturesome undertaking especially one with an uncertain outcome
From this reading Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading A lamplighter was lighting the lamps.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?
which person or people
From this reading Who, what had induced him, enticed him to venture out?
Chapter 8 of The Return by Walter De la Mare holds 197 sentences, grouped into 40 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 8 holds 197 sentences of The Return, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of The Return by Walter De la Mare exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 197 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 8 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 Return by Walter De la Mare on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5551 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #3075 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #3075, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 462 minutes of reading across 1111 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Return section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 28 chapters of The Return 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 Return, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
