Chapter 25 of The Trumpet-Major is here in full — 178 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXV
Chapter 25 of The Trumpet-Major is here in full — 178 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
'Dash my eyes now; listen to that! Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?' Matilda's acrimony returned. 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said. 'Well, then, let things be.'
Chapter 25 of The Trumpet-Major is here in full — 178 sentences across 36 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/35 · 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 rough and bitter manner
From this reading “Matilda's acrimony returned.”
united by being of the same opinion
From this reading “Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'”
to a severe or serious degree
From this reading “Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'”
a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading “'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.”
run or move very quickly or hastily
From this reading “'Dash my eyes now; listen to that!”
hear with intention
From this reading “'Dash my eyes now; listen to that!”
your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)
From this reading “'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.”
someone who supervises the physical aspects in the production of a show and who is in charge of the stage when the show is being performed
From this reading “Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'”
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.
a rough and bitter manner
From this reading Matilda's acrimony returned.
united by being of the same opinion
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
to a severe or serious degree
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading 'Well, then, let things be.'
a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
run or move very quickly or hastily
From this reading 'Dash my eyes now; listen to that!
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.
opinion or judgment
From this reading 'Dash my eyes now; listen to that!
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading 'Well, then, let things be.'
hear with intention
From this reading 'Dash my eyes now; listen to that!
your overall circumstances or condition in life (including everything that happens to you)
From this reading 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Matilda's acrimony returned.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading 'Dash my eyes now; listen to that!
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading 'Dash my eyes now; listen to that!
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.
past form of “return” — go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before
From this reading Matilda's acrimony returned.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.
someone who supervises the physical aspects in the production of a show and who is in charge of the stage when the show is being performed
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading 'Dash my eyes now; listen to that!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading 'Well, then, let things be.'
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading 'Well, then, let things be.'
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading 'Dash my eyes now; listen to that!
employed in accomplishing something
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
(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 Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 'I was down on my luck, or he wouldn't have had the chance!' she said.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Why, you chicken-hearted old stager, you was as well agreed as I. Come now; hasn't he used you badly?'
Chapter 25 of The Trumpet-Major by Thomas Hardy holds 178 sentences, grouped into 36 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 25 holds 178 sentences of The Trumpet-Major, unabridged, divided into 36 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 25 of The Trumpet-Major by Thomas Hardy exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 178 sentences, grouped into 36 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 36 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 36 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 25 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 Trumpet-Major by Thomas Hardy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6158 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2864 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2864, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 513 minutes of reading across 1232 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Trumpet-Major section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 34 chapters of The Trumpet-Major 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 Trumpet-Major, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
