Chapter 9 of The soul of a bishop is here in full — 204 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of The soul of a bishop is here in full — 204 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught. He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations. He was asking himself, Were his feet steady? Was his head swimming? His doubts glowed into assurance.
Chapter 9 of The soul of a bishop is here in full — 204 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.
in a keen or penetrating way
From this reading “He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.”
conspicuously or grossly unconventional or unusual
From this reading “He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.”
not to your liking
From this reading “He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.”
a serving of drink (usually alcoholic) drawn from a keg
From this reading “It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.”
past form of “glow” — emit a steady even light without flames
From this reading “His doubts glowed into assurance.”
given to examining own sensory and perceptual experiences
From this reading “He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.”
plural of “sensation” — an unelaborated elementary awareness of stimulation
From this reading “He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.”
the act of swimming
From this reading “Was his head swimming?”
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.
perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
in a keen or penetrating way
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
any thing at all
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
the verbal act of requesting
From this reading He was asking himself, Were his feet steady?
freedom from doubt; belief in yourself and your abilities
From this reading His doubts glowed into assurance.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
conspicuously or grossly unconventional or unusual
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
not to your liking
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
plural of “doubt” — the state of being unsure of something
From this reading His doubts glowed into assurance.
a serving of drink (usually alcoholic) drawn from a keg
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading He was asking himself, Were his feet steady?
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
past form of “glow” — emit a steady even light without flames
From this reading His doubts glowed into assurance.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading Was his head swimming?
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading He was asking himself, Were his feet steady?
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He was asking himself, Were his feet steady?
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading His doubts glowed into assurance.
given to examining own sensory and perceptual experiences
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
used to form the superlative
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
the trait of acting rashly and without prudence
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
completely prepared or in condition for immediate action or use or progress
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
plural of “sensation” — an unelaborated elementary awareness of stimulation
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
make steady
From this reading He was asking himself, Were his feet steady?
the act of swimming
From this reading Was his head swimming?
carry out
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He was acutely introspective, ready for anything, for the most disagreeable or the most bizarre sensations.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading He was asking himself, Were his feet steady?
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading It had been an act of courage, of rashness if you will, to take this draught.
Chapter 9 of The soul of a bishop by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells holds 204 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 9 holds 204 sentences of The soul of a bishop, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of The soul of a bishop by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 204 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 9 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 soul of a bishop by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5173 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1269 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1269, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 431 minutes of reading across 1035 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The soul of a bishop section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 26 chapters of The soul of a bishop 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 soul of a bishop, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
