Chapter 5 of The Story-Book of Science is here in full — 132 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter V
Chapter 5 of The Story-Book of Science is here in full — 132 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden. The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit. It was to be replaced by another. The children found their Uncle Paul seated on the trunk of the pear-tree. He was looking attentively at something.
Chapter 5 of The Story-Book of Science is here in full — 132 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/26 · 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.
with attention; in an attentive manner
From this reading “He was looking attentively at something.”
inflected form of “bear” — have
From this reading “The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.”
the ripened reproductive body of a seed plant
From this reading “The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.”
United States feminist (1885-1977)
From this reading “THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.”
having been robbed and destroyed by force and violence
From this reading “The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.”
past form of “replace” — substitute a person or thing for (another that is broken or inefficient or lost or no longer working or yielding what is expected)
From this reading “It was to be replaced by another.”
the main stem of a tree; usually covered with bark; the bole is usually the part that is commercially useful for lumber
From this reading “The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.”
plural of “worm” — any of numerous relatively small elongated soft-bodied animals especially of the phyla Annelida and Chaetognatha and Nematoda and Nemertea and Platyhelminthes; also many insect larvae
From this reading “The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
In this reading “The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.”
In this reading “It was to be replaced by another.”
cut down on; make a reduction in
In this reading “THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.”
In this reading “THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.”
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 THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading It was to be replaced by another.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading He was looking attentively at something.
with attention; in an attentive manner
From this reading He was looking attentively at something.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading It was to be replaced by another.
inflected form of “bear” — have
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading The children found their Uncle Paul seated on the trunk of the pear-tree.
separate with or as if with an instrument
From this reading THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
set up or found
From this reading The children found their Uncle Paul seated on the trunk of the pear-tree.
the ripened reproductive body of a seed plant
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
a plot of ground where plants are cultivated
From this reading THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was looking attentively at something.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
and nothing more
From this reading THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading He was looking attentively at something.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The children found their Uncle Paul seated on the trunk of the pear-tree.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The children found their Uncle Paul seated on the trunk of the pear-tree.
United States feminist (1885-1977)
From this reading THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
having been robbed and destroyed by force and violence
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
past form of “replace” — substitute a person or thing for (another that is broken or inefficient or lost or no longer working or yielding what is expected)
From this reading It was to be replaced by another.
(of persons) having the torso erect and legs bent with the body supported on the buttocks
From this reading The children found their Uncle Paul seated on the trunk of the pear-tree.
(used with count nouns) of an indefinite number more than 2 or 3 but not many
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading He was looking attentively at something.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading The children found their Uncle Paul seated on the trunk of the pear-tree.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It was to be replaced by another.
a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
the main stem of a tree; usually covered with bark; the bole is usually the part that is commercially useful for lumber
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading THE OLD PEAR-TREE UNCLE PAUL had just cut down a pear-tree in the garden.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
plural of “worm” — any of numerous relatively small elongated soft-bodied animals especially of the phyla Annelida and Chaetognatha and Nematoda and Nemertea and Platyhelminthes; also many insect larvae
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
a late time of life
From this reading The tree was old, its trunk ravaged by worms, and for several years it had not borne any fruit.
Chapter 5 of The Story-Book of Science by Jean-Henri Fabre holds 132 sentences, grouped into 27 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 5 holds 132 sentences of The Story-Book of Science, unabridged, divided into 27 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 5 of The Story-Book of Science by Jean-Henri Fabre exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 132 sentences, grouped into 27 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 27 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 27 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 5 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 Story-Book of Science by Jean-Henri Fabre on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5236 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56795 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56795, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 436 minutes of reading across 1048 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Story-Book of Science section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Story-Book of Science 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 Story-Book of Science, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
