Chapter 4 of The Splendid Idle Forties is here in full — 3488 sentences across 698 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Splendid Idle Forties is here in full — 3488 sentences across 698 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?" "Every night, ay, yi!" "And is it big yet? Ay, but that wall is high! Not a twig can I see!"
Chapter 4 of The Splendid Idle Forties is here in full — 3488 sentences across 698 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/697 · 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.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “"And is it big yet?”
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading “"Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"”
greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading “Ay, but that wall is high!”
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading “"Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"”
express in words
From this reading “"Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"”
branch out in a twiglike manner
From this reading “Not a twig can I see!"”
an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading “Ay, but that wall is high!”
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading “"Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"”
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 Not a twig can I see!"
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "And is it big yet?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Every night, ay, yi!"
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading "And is it big yet?
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Ay, but that wall is high!
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading Not a twig can I see!"
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading "Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"
greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading Ay, but that wall is high!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Not a twig can I see!"
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "And is it big yet?
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "And is it big yet?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading "Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Not a twig can I see!"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Not a twig can I see!"
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"
express in words
From this reading "Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Ay, but that wall is high!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"
branch out in a twiglike manner
From this reading Not a twig can I see!"
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"
an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading Ay, but that wall is high!
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading "Tell us, tell us, Mariquita, does she water the rose-tree every night?"
but in spite of that
From this reading "And is it big yet?
a Loloish language
From this reading "Every night, ay, yi!"
Chapter 4 of The Splendid Idle Forties by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton holds 3488 sentences, grouped into 698 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 4 holds 3488 sentences of The Splendid Idle Forties, unabridged, divided into 698 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Splendid Idle Forties by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 3488 sentences, grouped into 698 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 698 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 698 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 4 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 Splendid Idle Forties by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Splendid Idle Forties section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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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 Splendid Idle Forties, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
