Chapter 1 of The Unknown is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Unknown is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE. This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast: COLONEL WHARTON MR. CHARLES V. FRANCE MAJOR WHARTON (JOHN) MR. BASIL RATHBONE MRS.
Chapter 1 of The Unknown 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.
a New Testament book describing the development of the early church from Christ's Ascension to Paul's sojourn at Rome
the month following July and preceding September
From this reading “This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:”
any of several Old World tropical aromatic annual or perennial herbs of the genus Ocimum
From this reading “BASIL RATHBONE MRS.”
the second day of the week; the first working day
From this reading “This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:”
past form of “produce” — bring forth or yield
From this reading “This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:”
a building where theatrical performances or motion-picture shows can be presented
From this reading “This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:”
any of the numerous plants of the genus Viola
From this reading “_BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE.”
United States novelist (1862-1937)
From this reading “COLONEL WHARTON MR.”
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 “_BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
a New Testament book describing the development of the early church from Christ's Ascension to Paul's sojourn at Rome
From this reading _BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
the month following July and preceding September
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading _BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE.
any of several Old World tropical aromatic annual or perennial herbs of the genus Ocimum
From this reading BASIL RATHBONE MRS.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading _BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE.
put or send forth
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
King of France from 1560 to 1574 whose reign was dominated by his mother Catherine de Medicis (1550-1574)
From this reading CHARLES V. FRANCE MAJOR WHARTON (JOHN) MR.
a commissioned military officer in the United States Army or Air Force or Marines who ranks above a lieutenant colonel and below a brigadier general
From this reading COLONEL WHARTON MR.
about to be mentioned or specified
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
a republic in western Europe; the largest country wholly in Europe
From this reading CHARLES V. FRANCE MAJOR WHARTON (JOHN) MR.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading _BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE.
a room or building equipped with one or more toilets
From this reading CHARLES V. FRANCE MAJOR WHARTON (JOHN) MR.
of greater importance or stature or rank
From this reading CHARLES V. FRANCE MAJOR WHARTON (JOHN) MR.
the second day of the week; the first working day
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
a form of address for a man
From this reading COLONEL WHARTON MR.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading BASIL RATHBONE MRS.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
participate in games or sport
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
past form of “produce” — bring forth or yield
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BASIL RATHBONE MRS.
Identical; not different.
From this reading _BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE.
a building where theatrical performances or motion-picture shows can be presented
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading _BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE.
a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading _BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE.
a unit of potential equal to the potential difference between two points on a conductor carrying a current of 1 ampere when the power dissipated between the two points is 1 watt
From this reading CHARLES V. FRANCE MAJOR WHARTON (JOHN) MR.
any of the numerous plants of the genus Viola
From this reading _BY THE SAME AUTHOR._ _In Three Acts_ VIOLA TREE.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
United States novelist (1862-1937)
From this reading COLONEL WHARTON MR.
in the company of; together with
From this reading This play was produced on Monday, August 9, 1920, at the Aldwych Theatre with the following cast:
Chapter 1 of The Unknown 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 1 holds 407 sentences of The Unknown, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Unknown 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 1 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 Unknown by W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Unknown section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 0 chapters of The Unknown 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 Unknown, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
