Chapter 3 of The Story of My Life is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Story of My Life is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
It was not all old comedy at the Haymarket. "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice. Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully! I remember wondering if I should ever play Beatrice. I just _wondered_, that was all.
Chapter 3 of The Story of My Life is here in full — 412 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
a rapid active commotion
From this reading “"Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.”
the woman who guided Dante through Paradise in the Divine Comedy
From this reading “"Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.”
in a beautiful manner
From this reading “Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!”
light and humorous drama with a happy ending
From this reading “It was not all old comedy at the Haymarket.”
a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war
From this reading “"Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.”
a man distinguished by exceptional courage and nobility and strength
From this reading “"Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.”
belonging to the modern era; since the Middle Ages
From this reading “Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!”
showing curiosity
From this reading “I remember wondering if I should ever play Beatrice.”
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 Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
a rapid active commotion
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading It was not all old comedy at the Haymarket.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading It was not all old comedy at the Haymarket.
the woman who guided Dante through Paradise in the Divine Comedy
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
in a beautiful manner
From this reading Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!
light and humorous drama with a happy ending
From this reading It was not all old comedy at the Haymarket.
all through a period, or at some point within it
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
at any time
From this reading I remember wondering if I should ever play Beatrice.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was not all old comedy at the Haymarket.
a man distinguished by exceptional courage and nobility and strength
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading I remember wondering if I should ever play Beatrice.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was not all old comedy at the Haymarket.
and nothing more
From this reading I just _wondered_, that was all.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
belonging to the modern era; since the Middle Ages
From this reading Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!
to a great degree or extent
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It was not all old comedy at the Haymarket.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading It was not all old comedy at the Haymarket.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
participate in games or sport
From this reading I remember wondering if I should ever play Beatrice.
(of games) engaged in
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
To recall to mind.
From this reading I remember wondering if I should ever play Beatrice.
express in words
From this reading Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading I remember wondering if I should ever play Beatrice.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading I just _wondered_, that was all.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading It was not all old comedy at the Haymarket.
in spite of the fact that
From this reading Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Much Ado About Nothing" was put on during my engagement, and I played Hero to Miss Louisa Angell's Beatrice.
precisely as stated
From this reading Miss Angell was a very modern Beatrice, but I, though I say it "as shouldn't," played Hero beautifully!
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was not all old comedy at the Haymarket.
past form of “wonder” — have a wish or desire to know something
From this reading I just _wondered_, that was all.
showing curiosity
From this reading I remember wondering if I should ever play Beatrice.
Chapter 3 of The Story of My Life by Ellen Terry holds 412 sentences, grouped into 83 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 3 holds 412 sentences of The Story of My Life, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Story of My Life by Ellen Terry exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 412 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 3 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 of My Life by Ellen Terry on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6401 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #12326 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #12326, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 533 minutes of reading across 1281 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Story of My Life section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 16 chapters of The Story of My Life 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 of My Life, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
