Chapter 1 of The tale of Betsy Butterfly is here in full — 524 sentences across 105 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The tale of Betsy Butterfly is here in full — 524 sentences across 105 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors. For instance, there was Jasper Jay. He was the noisiest chap for miles around. And there was Peter Mink. Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district.
Chapter 1 of The tale of Betsy Butterfly is here in full — 524 sentences across 105 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/104 · 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 boy or man
From this reading “He was the noisiest chap for miles around.”
a region marked off for administrative or other purposes
From this reading “Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district.”
an opaque form of quartz; red or yellow or brown or dark green in color; used for ornamentation or as a gemstone
From this reading “For instance, there was Jasper Jay.”
United States diplomat and jurist who negotiated peace treaties with Britain and served as the first chief justice of the United States Supreme Court (1745-1829)
From this reading “For instance, there was Jasper Jay.”
the expensive fur of a mink
From this reading “And there was Peter Mink.”
plural of “neighbor” — a person who lives (or is located) near another
From this reading “Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.”
superlative of “noisy” — full of or characterized by loud and nonmusical sounds
From this reading “He was the noisiest chap for miles around.”
superlative of “rude” — socially incorrect in behavior
From this reading “Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district.”
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.
North American republic containing 50 states - 48 conterminous states in North America plus Alaska in northwest North America and the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean; achieved independence in 1776
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
surrounding, or on every side of, something
From this reading He was the noisiest chap for miles around.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
a boy or man
From this reading He was the noisiest chap for miles around.
unlike in nature or quality or form or degree
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
a region marked off for administrative or other purposes
From this reading Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district.
the state of being unsure of something
From this reading Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
a boy or man
From this reading Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district.
a piece of land cleared of trees and usually enclosed
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
people in general (often used in the plural)
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For instance, there was Jasper Jay.
the trees and other plants in a large densely wooded area
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was the noisiest chap for miles around.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
an occurrence of something
From this reading For instance, there was Jasper Jay.
an opaque form of quartz; red or yellow or brown or dark green in color; used for ornamentation or as a gemstone
From this reading For instance, there was Jasper Jay.
United States diplomat and jurist who negotiated peace treaties with Britain and served as the first chief justice of the United States Supreme Court (1745-1829)
From this reading For instance, there was Jasper Jay.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
plural of “mile” — a unit of length equal to 1,760 yards or 5,280 feet; exactly 1609.344 meters
From this reading He was the noisiest chap for miles around.
the expensive fur of a mink
From this reading And there was Peter Mink.
used to form the superlative
From this reading Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district.
plural of “neighbor” — a person who lives (or is located) near another
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
superlative of “noisy” — full of or characterized by loud and nonmusical sounds
From this reading He was the noisiest chap for miles around.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
disciple of Jesus and leader of the Apostles; regarded by Catholics as the vicar of Christ on earth and first Pope
From this reading And there was Peter Mink.
affording pleasure; being in harmony with your taste or likings
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
playful in an appealingly bold way
From this reading Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district.
superlative of “rude” — socially incorrect in behavior
From this reading Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district.
plural of “state” — the territory occupied by one of the constituent administrative districts of a nation
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
in or at that place or location
From this reading For instance, there was Jasper Jay.
characterized by unity; being or joined into a single entity
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
a long depression in the surface of the land that usually contains a river
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading Made in the United States of America EVERY one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors.
including all components without exception; being one unit or constituting the full amount or extent or duration; complete
From this reading Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district.
Chapter 1 of The tale of Betsy Butterfly by Arthur Scott Bailey holds 524 sentences, grouped into 105 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 524 sentences of The tale of Betsy Butterfly, unabridged, divided into 105 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The tale of Betsy Butterfly by Arthur Scott Bailey exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 524 sentences, grouped into 105 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 105 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 105 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.
Common questions about reading The tale of Betsy Butterfly by Arthur Scott Bailey on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1032 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21322 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21322, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 86 minutes of reading across 207 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The tale of Betsy Butterfly section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 2 chapters of The tale of Betsy Butterfly 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 tale of Betsy Butterfly, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
