Chapter 1 of The Soul of a Child is here in full — 1561 sentences across 313 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Soul of a Child is here in full — 1561 sentences across 313 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over." "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw. Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively. "Give me a kiss! You love your old Granny, don't you?
Chapter 1 of The Soul of a Child is here in full — 1561 sentences across 313 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 100/312 · 5 reading units · Lines 496–500
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.
quickly and without warning
From this reading “Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively.”
any person at all
From this reading “"Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.”
in an effusive manner
From this reading “Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively.”
the mother of your father or mother
From this reading “"Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.”
the act of caressing with the lips (or an instance thereof)
From this reading “"Give me a kiss!”
-ing form of “quote” — repeat a passage from
From this reading “"Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.”
plural of “thousand” — the cardinal number that is the product of 10 and 100
From this reading “"There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."”
be worried, concerned, anxious, troubled, or uneasy
From this reading “"There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."”
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 "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
quickly and without warning
From this reading Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
any person at all
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
any thing at all
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
made or become different in nature or form
From this reading Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You love your old Granny, don't you?
in an effusive manner
From this reading Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively.
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
the mother of your father or mother
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
without warmth
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively.
the act of caressing with the lips (or an instance thereof)
From this reading "Give me a kiss!
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading You love your old Granny, don't you?
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Give me a kiss!
pleasant or pleasing or agreeable in nature or appearance
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
not one thing; not anything
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
above and across; more than
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
-ing form of “quote” — repeat a passage from
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
cut with a saw
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively.
marked by absence of sound
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
plural of “take” — the income or profit arising from such transactions as the sale of land or other property
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading "Anybody can talk, but it takes a head to keep silent," said Granny impersonally, quoting another old saw.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively.
in or at that place or location
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
plural of “thousand” — the cardinal number that is the product of 10 and 100
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
moved around an axis or center
From this reading Then her manner changed abruptly and she turned to Keith effusively.
which person or people
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
be worried, concerned, anxious, troubled, or uneasy
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading "There are thousands of old people who would give anything to have a nice home and nothing to worry over."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You love your old Granny, don't you?
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You love your old Granny, don't you?
Chapter 1 of The Soul of a Child by Edwin Björkman holds 1561 sentences, grouped into 313 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 1 holds 1561 sentences of The Soul of a Child, unabridged, divided into 313 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Soul of a Child by Edwin Björkman exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 1561 sentences, grouped into 313 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 313 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 313 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 1 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.
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Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in The Soul of a Child, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
