Chapter 17 of The Rise of Silas Lapham is here in full — 198 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVII
Chapter 17 of The Rise of Silas Lapham is here in full — 198 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham. "He's never done anything else." Lapham looked up consciously, with an uneasy laugh. "Pshaw, Persis! you never forget anything?" "Oh, I've got more than that to remember.
Chapter 17 of The Rise of Silas Lapham is here in full — 198 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.
any thing at all
From this reading “"He's never done anything else."”
with awareness
From this reading “Lapham looked up consciously, with an uneasy laugh.”
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading “"He's never done anything else."”
dismiss from the mind; stop remembering
From this reading “"Pshaw, Persis! you never forget anything?"”
the sound of laughing
From this reading “Lapham looked up consciously, with an uneasy laugh.”
affording pleasure; being in harmony with your taste or likings
From this reading “"I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.”
To recall to mind.
From this reading “"Oh, I've got more than that to remember.”
lacking a sense of security or affording no ease or reassurance
From this reading “Lapham looked up consciously, with an uneasy laugh.”
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.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Lapham looked up consciously, with an uneasy laugh.
any thing at all
From this reading "He's never done anything else."
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.
with awareness
From this reading Lapham looked up consciously, with an uneasy laugh.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading "He's never done anything else."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "He's never done anything else."
dismiss from the mind; stop remembering
From this reading "Pshaw, Persis! you never forget anything?"
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading "Oh, I've got more than that to remember.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "He's never done anything else."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Oh, I've got more than that to remember.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.
the sound of laughing
From this reading Lapham looked up consciously, with an uneasy laugh.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Lapham looked up consciously, with an uneasy laugh.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading "Oh, I've got more than that to remember.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading "I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading "He's never done anything else."
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading "Oh, I've got more than that to remember.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Pshaw, Persis! you never forget anything?"
affording pleasure; being in harmony with your taste or likings
From this reading "I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Pshaw, Persis! you never forget anything?"
To recall to mind.
From this reading "Oh, I've got more than that to remember.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading "Oh, I've got more than that to remember.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Oh, I've got more than that to remember.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Oh, I've got more than that to remember.
lacking a sense of security or affording no ease or reassurance
From this reading Lapham looked up consciously, with an uneasy laugh.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Lapham looked up consciously, with an uneasy laugh.
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "I don't see why he shouldn't be pleasant," said Mrs. Lapham.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Lapham looked up consciously, with an uneasy laugh.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Pshaw, Persis! you never forget anything?"
Chapter 17 of The Rise of Silas Lapham by William Dean Howells holds 198 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 17 holds 198 sentences of The Rise of Silas Lapham, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 17 of The Rise of Silas Lapham by William Dean Howells exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 198 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 17 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 Rise of Silas Lapham by William Dean Howells on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8158 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #154 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #154, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1632 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Rise of Silas Lapham section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Rise of Silas Lapham 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 Rise of Silas Lapham, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
