Chapter 4 of The Sun's Babies is here in full — 443 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Sun's Babies is here in full — 443 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge. "It is the best thing for them," replied the Scrambler. "There is no room for them here. They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches." There was indeed no room for them there.
Chapter 4 of The Sun's Babies is here in full — 443 sentences across 89 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/88 · 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.
Directly under; in or to a lower position than.
From this reading “They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."”
plural of “branch” — a division of some larger or more complex organization
From this reading “They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."”
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading “"I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.”
stopped up; clogged up
From this reading “They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."”
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading “They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."”
avoid or try to avoid fulfilling, answering, or performing (duties, questions, or issues)
From this reading “"I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.”
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading “There was indeed no room for them there.”
the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
From this reading “"I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.”
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 “"It is the best thing for them," replied the Scrambler.”
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.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."
Directly under; in or to a lower position than.
From this reading They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."
the supreme effort one can make
From this reading "It is the best thing for them," replied the Scrambler.
plural of “branch” — a division of some larger or more complex organization
From this reading They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."
plural of “child” — a young person of either sex
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
stopped up; clogged up
From this reading They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "It is the best thing for them," replied the Scrambler.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
the act of departing
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
avoid or try to avoid fulfilling, answering, or performing (duties, questions, or issues)
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "There is no room for them here.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading There was indeed no room for them there.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "It is the best thing for them," replied the Scrambler.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "It is the best thing for them," replied the Scrambler.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."
not any; not one
From this reading "There is no room for them here.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading "It is the best thing for them," replied the Scrambler.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading "There is no room for them here.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
a rapid mover; someone who scrambles
From this reading "It is the best thing for them," replied the Scrambler.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading "It is the best thing for them," replied the Scrambler.
in or at that place or location
From this reading "There is no room for them here.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."
a special situation
From this reading "It is the best thing for them," replied the Scrambler.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading There was indeed no room for them there.
the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading They would be choked if they fell beneath my branches."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I wonder you like to see your children going so far away from you," said the Hedge.
Chapter 4 of The Sun's Babies by Edith Howes holds 443 sentences, grouped into 89 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 443 sentences of The Sun's Babies, unabridged, divided into 89 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Sun's Babies by Edith Howes exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 443 sentences, grouped into 89 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 89 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 89 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 Sun's Babies by Edith Howes on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3126 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #38063 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #38063, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 260 minutes of reading across 626 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Sun's Babies section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of The Sun's Babies 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 Sun's Babies, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
