Chapter 37 of The Rocks of Valpré is here in full — 532 sentences across 107 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXXVII
Chapter 37 of The Rocks of Valpré is here in full — 532 sentences across 107 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE MESSENGER "Roses!" said Chris. "How nice!" She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled. It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth. She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
Chapter 37 of The Rocks of Valpré is here in full — 532 sentences across 107 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/106 · 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 “blossom” — reproductive organ of angiosperm plants especially one having showy or colorful parts
From this reading “She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.”
a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear
From this reading “It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.”
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading “She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.”
covered with a layer of dust
From this reading “She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.”
great merriment
From this reading “It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.”
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading “It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.”
-ing form of “possess” — have as an attribute, knowledge, or skill
From this reading “It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.”
(of light) lacking in intensity or brightness; dim or feeble
From this reading “It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.”
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 was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
plural of “blossom” — reproductive organ of angiosperm plants especially one having showy or colorful parts
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE MESSENGER "Roses!" said Chris.
an upholstered seat for more than one person
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
covered with a layer of dust
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
a gay feeling
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
a mental representation of some haunting experience
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
green color or pigment; resembling the color of growing grass
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
occupied or in the control of; often used in combination
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "How nice!"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
a small worthless amount
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
a person who carries a message
From this reading THE MESSENGER "Roses!" said Chris.
great merriment
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
pleasant or pleasing or agreeable in nature or appearance
From this reading "How nice!"
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
a large area of land preserved in its natural state as public property
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
-ing form of “possess” — have as an attribute, knowledge, or skill
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
plural of “rose” — any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading THE MESSENGER "Roses!" said Chris.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading THE MESSENGER "Roses!" said Chris.
100 senti equal 1 kroon in Estonia
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE MESSENGER "Roses!" said Chris.
below or beneath something; less than
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
precisely as stated
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
(of light) lacking in intensity or brightness; dim or feeble
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was a very pathetic smile, a wan ghost of gaiety, possessing more of bravery than mirth.
a Caucasian
From this reading She held the white blossoms that Jack had sent her against her face, and smiled.
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading She lay on a couch by the window, looking out under the sun-blinds at the dusty green of the park.
Chapter 37 of The Rocks of Valpré by Ethel M. (Ethel May) Dell holds 532 sentences, grouped into 107 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 37 holds 532 sentences of The Rocks of Valpré, unabridged, divided into 107 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 37 of The Rocks of Valpré by Ethel M. (Ethel May) Dell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 532 sentences, grouped into 107 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 107 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 107 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 37 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 Rocks of Valpré by Ethel M. (Ethel May) Dell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 13142 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #13547 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #13547, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2629 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Rocks of Valpré section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Rocks of Valpré 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 Rocks of Valpré, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
