Chapter 16 of The Ruling Passion is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVI
Chapter 16 of The Ruling Passion is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls. “No,” she cried, “I can do it as well as you. You think you are so much older. Well, what of that? The light is part mine; father said so.
Chapter 16 of The Ruling Passion is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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 “girl” — a young female
From this reading “She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.”
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading “The light is part mine; father said so.”
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “The light is part mine; father said so.”
advanced in years; (“aged” is pronounced as two syllables)
From this reading “You think you are so much older.”
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading “The light is part mine; father said so.”
past form of “refuse” — show unwillingness towards
From this reading “She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.”
comparative of “short” — primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration
From this reading “She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.”
orally recite the letters of or give the spelling of
From this reading “She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.”
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 She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading You think you are so much older.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading “No,” she cried, “I can do it as well as you.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading “No,” she cried, “I can do it as well as you.
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading “No,” she cried, “I can do it as well as you.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading “No,” she cried, “I can do it as well as you.
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading The light is part mine; father said so.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “No,” she cried, “I can do it as well as you.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The light is part mine; father said so.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “No,” she cried, “I can do it as well as you.
of comparatively little physical weight or density
From this reading The light is part mine; father said so.
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading The light is part mine; father said so.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading You think you are so much older.
not any; not one
From this reading “No,” she cried, “I can do it as well as you.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Well, what of that?
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
advanced in years; (“aged” is pronounced as two syllables)
From this reading You think you are so much older.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
something determined in relation to something that includes it
From this reading The light is part mine; father said so.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
past form of “refuse” — show unwillingness towards
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading The light is part mine; father said so.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
comparative of “short” — primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading You think you are so much older.
orally recite the letters of or give the spelling of
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Well, what of that?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading You think you are so much older.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading “No,” she cried, “I can do it as well as you.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading Well, what of that?
in the company of; together with
From this reading She refused to be put off with a shorter spell than the other girls.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “No,” she cried, “I can do it as well as you.
Chapter 16 of The Ruling Passion by Henry Van Dyke holds 201 sentences, grouped into 41 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 16 holds 201 sentences of The Ruling Passion, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of The Ruling Passion by Henry Van Dyke exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 201 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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 16 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 Ruling Passion by Henry Van Dyke on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3398 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1048 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1048, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 283 minutes of reading across 680 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Ruling Passion section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of The Ruling Passion 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 Ruling Passion, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
