Chapter 23 of The Tower of London is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of The Tower of London is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.” “Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that. Life is as sweet at seventy as seventeen. However, I’ll do my work as quickly as I can. If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
Chapter 23 of The Tower of London is here in full — 399 sentences across 80 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/79 · 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.
smoothly and without difficulty; precisely and deftly
From this reading “If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.””
in a gruff manner
From this reading ““Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that.”
an inquiry into public opinion conducted by interviewing a random sample of people
From this reading ““Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that.”
with speed
From this reading “However, I’ll do my work as quickly as I can.”
a platform from which criminals are executed (hanged or beheaded)
From this reading “If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.””
being one more than sixteen
From this reading ““So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.””
being ten more than sixty
From this reading “Life is as sweet at seventy as seventeen.”
having or denoting the characteristic taste of sugar
From this reading “Life is as sweet at seventy as seventeen.”
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 ““So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.””
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 If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Life is as sweet at seventy as seventeen.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Life is as sweet at seventy as seventeen.
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading However, I’ll do my work as quickly as I can.
smoothly and without difficulty; precisely and deftly
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry
From this reading “Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading However, I’ll do my work as quickly as I can.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
in a gruff manner
From this reading “Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
used to add a contrasting statement
From this reading However, I’ll do my work as quickly as I can.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading However, I’ll do my work as quickly as I can.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Life is as sweet at seventy as seventeen.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading However, I’ll do my work as quickly as I can.
near in time or place or relationship
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
not one thing; not anything
From this reading “Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that.
an inquiry into public opinion conducted by interviewing a random sample of people
From this reading “Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
with speed
From this reading However, I’ll do my work as quickly as I can.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
a platform from which criminals are executed (hanged or beheaded)
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
being one more than sixteen
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
being ten more than sixty
From this reading Life is as sweet at seventy as seventeen.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
the immaterial part of a person; the actuating cause of an individual life
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
having or denoting the characteristic taste of sugar
From this reading Life is as sweet at seventy as seventeen.
understood in a certain way; made sense of
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Poll—poh!” cried Mauger, gruffly—“there’s nothing in that.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
precisely as stated
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
hope for; have a wish
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading However, I’ll do my work as quickly as I can.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading If you wish to see a head cleanly taken off, get as near the scaffold as you can.”
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading “So I heard,” replied Sorrocold—“Poor soul! she is very young—not seventeen, I am told.”
Chapter 23 of The Tower of London by William Harrison Ainsworth holds 399 sentences, grouped into 80 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 23 holds 399 sentences of The Tower of London, unabridged, divided into 80 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of The Tower of London by William Harrison Ainsworth exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 399 sentences, grouped into 80 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 80 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 80 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 23 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 Tower of London by William Harrison Ainsworth on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9437 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #49850 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #49850, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1888 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Tower of London section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of The Tower of London 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 Tower of London, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
