Chapter 13 of The Three Lovers is here in full — 389 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIII
Chapter 13 of The Three Lovers is here in full — 389 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort. Her confidence was staunch. Nothing to fear ... nothing to fear.... She was Patricia Quin. Just as she felt that she would never die, so Patricia felt that she would never want.
Chapter 13 of The Three Lovers is here in full — 389 sentences across 78 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/77 · 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 state of being relaxed and feeling no pain
From this reading “For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.”
freedom from doubt; belief in yourself and your abilities
From this reading “Her confidence was staunch.”
be located or situated somewhere; occupy a certain position
From this reading “For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.”
plural of “pound” — 16 ounces avoirdupois
From this reading “For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.”
adopted in order to deceive
From this reading “For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.”
one of five children born at the same time from the same pregnancy
From this reading “She was Patricia Quin.”
firm and dependable especially in loyalty
From this reading “Her confidence was staunch.”
plural of “week” — any period of seven consecutive days
From this reading “For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.”
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 “For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.”
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 For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Just as she felt that she would never die, so Patricia felt that she would never want.
in the space, time, or range separating two things
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
a state of being relaxed and feeling no pain
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
freedom from doubt; belief in yourself and your abilities
From this reading Her confidence was staunch.
pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
From this reading Just as she felt that she would never die, so Patricia felt that she would never want.
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading Just as she felt that she would never die, so Patricia felt that she would never want.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Her confidence was staunch.
and nothing more
From this reading Just as she felt that she would never die, so Patricia felt that she would never want.
be located or situated somewhere; occupy a certain position
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
a particular point in time
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading Just as she felt that she would never die, so Patricia felt that she would never want.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She was Patricia Quin.
plural of “pound” — 16 ounces avoirdupois
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
adopted in order to deceive
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
one of five children born at the same time from the same pregnancy
From this reading She was Patricia Quin.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Just as she felt that she would never die, so Patricia felt that she would never want.
firm and dependable especially in loyalty
From this reading Her confidence was staunch.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
in or at that place or location
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading Just as she felt that she would never die, so Patricia felt that she would never want.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
plural of “week” — any period of seven consecutive days
From this reading For a few minutes she pretended that there was nothing to fear, that there must lie pounds and weeks between the moment and the end of comfort.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Just as she felt that she would never die, so Patricia felt that she would never want.
Chapter 13 of The Three Lovers by Frank Swinnerton holds 389 sentences, grouped into 78 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 13 holds 389 sentences of The Three Lovers, unabridged, divided into 78 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 13 of The Three Lovers by Frank Swinnerton exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 389 sentences, grouped into 78 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 78 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 78 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 13 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 Lovers by Frank Swinnerton on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7752 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #63479 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #63479, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1551 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Three Lovers section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 19 chapters of The Three Lovers 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 Lovers, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
