Chapter 11 of The Three Brothers is here in full — 245 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XI
Chapter 11 of The Three Brothers is here in full — 245 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MRS. BARTON’S LITTLE BILL. There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said. The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke. And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.
Chapter 11 of The Three Brothers is here in full — 245 sentences across 49 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/49 · 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.
the state of owing something (especially money)
From this reading “And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.”
plural of “expectation” — belief about (or mental picture of) the future
From this reading “The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.”
a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter
From this reading “The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.”
in large part; mainly or chiefly
From this reading “And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.”
lasting for a markedly brief time
From this reading “The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.”
not having enough money to pay for necessities
From this reading “There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.”
interact in a certain way
From this reading “The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.”
the state of being rich and affluent; having a plentiful supply of material goods and money
From this reading “The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.”
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 “There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.”
In this reading “The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.”
In this reading “The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.”
In this reading “And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.”
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 man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BARTON’S LITTLE BILL.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
at or toward the back of something
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.
a statute in draft before it becomes law
From this reading BARTON’S LITTLE BILL.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
the state of owing something (especially money)
From this reading And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.
unlike in nature or quality or form or degree
From this reading There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.
the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
posing no difficulty; requiring little effort
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
plural of “expectation” — belief about (or mental picture of) the future
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.
a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
in large part; mainly or chiefly
From this reading And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading BARTON’S LITTLE BILL.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
used to say something is possible, or to give permission
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
lasting for a markedly brief time
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
used to form the superlative
From this reading And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading MRS.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
not having enough money to pay for necessities
From this reading There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading And most people, too, find it easy enough to be largely in debt.
interact in a certain way
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
structure consisting of a sloping way down to the water from the place where ships are built or repaired
From this reading There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading There are different ways of being penniless, as we have said.
the state of being rich and affluent; having a plentiful supply of material goods and money
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
which person or people
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
but in spite of that
From this reading The man who does his work from day to day may have nothing, and yet be easy enough; and the man who has wealth or expectations behind him may treat a momentary impecuniosity as a good joke.
Chapter 11 of The Three Brothers by Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant holds 245 sentences, grouped into 49 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 11 holds 245 sentences of The Three Brothers, unabridged, divided into 49 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 11 of The Three Brothers by Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 245 sentences, grouped into 49 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 49 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 49 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 11 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 Three Brothers by Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4154 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #58320 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #58320, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 346 minutes of reading across 831 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Three Brothers section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 21 chapters of The Three Brothers 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 Three Brothers, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
