Chapter 3 of The Trembling of a Leaf is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Trembling of a Leaf is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The clerk brought the hypodermic needle. "You give it to him," said Mackintosh. "You're more used to that sort of thing than I am." His head ached horribly. It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
Chapter 3 of The Trembling of a Leaf is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
past form of “ache” — feel physical pain
From this reading “His head ached horribly.”
the act of overcoming or outdoing
From this reading “It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.”
an employee who performs clerical work (e.g., keeps records or accounts)
From this reading “The clerk brought the hypodermic needle.”
of a dreadful kind
From this reading “His head ached horribly.”
a piston syringe that is fitted with a hypodermic needle for giving injections
From this reading “The clerk brought the hypodermic needle.”
a lightweight waterproof (usually rubberized) fabric
From this reading “"You give it to him," said Mackintosh.”
the leaf of a conifer
From this reading “The clerk brought the hypodermic needle.”
plural of “sort” — a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading “It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.”
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 felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.”
move out of or depart from
In this reading “It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.”
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.
past form of “ache” — feel physical pain
From this reading His head ached horribly.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading "You're more used to that sort of thing than I am."
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
the act of overcoming or outdoing
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading The clerk brought the hypodermic needle.
an employee who performs clerical work (e.g., keeps records or accounts)
From this reading The clerk brought the hypodermic needle.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
cause to have, in the abstract sense or physical sense
From this reading "You give it to him," said Mackintosh.
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading His head ached horribly.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "You give it to him," said Mackintosh.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His head ached horribly.
of a dreadful kind
From this reading His head ached horribly.
a piston syringe that is fitted with a hypodermic needle for giving injections
From this reading The clerk brought the hypodermic needle.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "You're more used to that sort of thing than I am."
relating to or being on the side closer to the center or within a defined space
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "You give it to him," said Mackintosh.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
a lightweight waterproof (usually rubberized) fabric
From this reading "You give it to him," said Mackintosh.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading "You're more used to that sort of thing than I am."
the leaf of a conifer
From this reading The clerk brought the hypodermic needle.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "You're more used to that sort of thing than I am."
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "You give it to him," said Mackintosh.
(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading "You're more used to that sort of thing than I am."
plural of “sort” — a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading "You're more used to that sort of thing than I am."
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "You're more used to that sort of thing than I am."
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The clerk brought the hypodermic needle.
a special situation
From this reading "You're more used to that sort of thing than I am."
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
in spite of the fact that
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "You give it to him," said Mackintosh.
hard to endure
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
employed in accomplishing something
From this reading "You're more used to that sort of thing than I am."
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading It felt as though all sorts of little savage things were beating inside it, trying to get out.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You give it to him," said Mackintosh.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "You're more used to that sort of thing than I am."
Chapter 3 of The Trembling of a Leaf by W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham holds 407 sentences, grouped into 82 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 3 holds 407 sentences of The Trembling of a Leaf, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Trembling of a Leaf by W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 407 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 3 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 Trembling of a Leaf by W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5384 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #26854 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #26854, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 448 minutes of reading across 1077 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Trembling of a Leaf section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of The Trembling of a Leaf 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 Trembling of a Leaf, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
