Chapter 3 of The Unpublishable Memoirs is here in full — 436 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of The Unpublishable Memoirs is here in full — 436 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Please explain, sir," said the judge sternly. "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer. I was literally bored to death. I made the charge in jest. DePuyster took it so seriously that I was compelled to supply the proof.
Chapter 3 of The Unpublishable Memoirs is here in full — 436 sentences across 88 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/87 · 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.
plural of “anecdote” — short account of an incident (especially a biographical one)
From this reading “"DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.”
made in or typical of earlier times and valued for its age
From this reading “"DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.”
tired of the world
From this reading “I was literally bored to death.”
inflected form of “compel” — force somebody to do something
From this reading “DePuyster took it so seriously that I was compelled to supply the proof.”
a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter
From this reading “I made the charge in jest.”
in a literal sense
From this reading “I was literally bored to death.”
a serious (sometimes fatal) infection of rodents caused by Yersinia pestis and accidentally transmitted to humans by the bite of a flea that has bitten an infected animal
From this reading “"DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.”
with sternness; in a severe manner
From this reading “"Please explain, sir," said the judge sternly.”
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.
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 "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
plural of “anecdote” — short account of an incident (especially a biographical one)
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
made in or typical of earlier times and valued for its age
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
tired of the world
From this reading I was literally bored to death.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
to make a rush at or sudden attack upon, as in battle
From this reading I made the charge in jest.
inflected form of “compel” — force somebody to do something
From this reading DePuyster took it so seriously that I was compelled to supply the proof.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading I was literally bored to death.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
make plain and comprehensible
From this reading "Please explain, sir," said the judge sternly.
a social unit living together
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
plural of “friend” — a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I made the charge in jest.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter
From this reading I made the charge in jest.
determine the result of (a competition)
From this reading "Please explain, sir," said the judge sternly.
in a literal sense
From this reading I was literally bored to death.
for more time
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading I made the charge in jest.
not any; not one
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
a serious (sometimes fatal) infection of rodents caused by Yersinia pestis and accidentally transmitted to humans by the bite of a flea that has bitten an infected animal
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading "Please explain, sir," said the judge sternly.
any factual evidence that helps to establish the truth of something
From this reading DePuyster took it so seriously that I was compelled to supply the proof.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Please explain, sir," said the judge sternly.
in a serious manner
From this reading DePuyster took it so seriously that I was compelled to supply the proof.
term of address for a man
From this reading "Please explain, sir," said the judge sternly.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading DePuyster took it so seriously that I was compelled to supply the proof.
be standing; be upright
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
with sternness; in a severe manner
From this reading "Please explain, sir," said the judge sternly.
plural of “story” — a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
give something useful or necessary to
From this reading DePuyster took it so seriously that I was compelled to supply the proof.
an overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Please explain, sir," said the judge sternly.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "DePuyster had become such a pest, such a terror to his friends by his family anecdotes and antique stories that I could stand it no longer.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading DePuyster took it so seriously that I was compelled to supply the proof.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was literally bored to death.
Chapter 3 of The Unpublishable Memoirs by A. S. W. (Abraham Simon Wolf) Rosenbach holds 436 sentences, grouped into 88 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 436 sentences of The Unpublishable Memoirs, unabridged, divided into 88 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of The Unpublishable Memoirs by A. S. W. (Abraham Simon Wolf) Rosenbach exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 436 sentences, grouped into 88 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 88 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 88 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 Unpublishable Memoirs by A. S. W. (Abraham Simon Wolf) Rosenbach on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1708 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #38746 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #38746, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 142 minutes of reading across 342 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Unpublishable Memoirs section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 4 chapters of The Unpublishable Memoirs 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 Unpublishable Memoirs, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
