The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1

Chapter IV

Chapter 4 of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1 is here in full — 146 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Johannes Scotus • Curated US English Learning Edition

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"The Earl was a wrathful man to see."

_Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

As his name argued, he was descended from a good stock, but his family had gradually sunk in the scale of life till he was glad to accept a situation in His Majesty's Revenue Office at Edinburgh.

Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

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LEARNER DICTIONARY

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/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/

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A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Chapter IV Reading 1/29

The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1 Johannes Scotus

Chapter IV

Chapter 4 of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1 is here in full — 146 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

"The Earl was a wrathful man to see." _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox. As his name argued, he was descended from a good stock, but his family had gradually sunk in the scale of life till he was glad to accept a situation in His Majesty's Revenue Office at Edinburgh. Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit. It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1

Chapter IV

Chapter 4 of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1 is here in full — 146 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/29 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

"The Earl was a wrathful man to see."

Line 2

_Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

Line 3

As his name argued, he was descended from a good stock, but his family had gradually sunk in the scale of life till he was glad to accept a situation in His Majesty's Revenue Office at Edinburgh.

/æz hɪz neɪm ˈɑːrɡjuːd hiː wɑːz dɪˈsendəd frʌm ə ɡʊd stɑːk bʌt hɪz ˈfæməli hæd ˈɡrædʒuːəli sʌŋk ɪn ðə skeɪl ʌv laɪf tɪl hiː wɑːz ɡlæd tuː ækˈsept ə ˌsɪtʃuːˈeɪʃən ɪn hɪz ˈmædʒəstiz ˈrevənuː ˈɔːfɪs æt ˈedənbəroʊ/

Line 4

Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

Line 5

It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

Learner Dictionary

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.

conceit noun US /kənˈsiːt/

feelings of excessive pride

From this reading “Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.”

consequential adjective US /ˌkɑːnsəˈkwenʃəl/

having important issues or results

From this reading “It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."”

gifted adjective US /ˈɡɪftəd/

endowed with talent or talents

From this reading “Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.”

intolerable adjective US /ˌɪnˈtɑːlərəbəl/

incapable of being tolerated or endured

From this reading “Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.”

lessened adjective US /ˈlesənd/

impaired by diminution

From this reading “Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.”

Majesty's noun US /ˈmædʒəstiz/

possessive form of “majesty” — impressiveness in scale or proportion

From this reading “As his name argued, he was descended from a good stock, but his family had gradually sunk in the scale of life till he was glad to accept a situation in His Majesty's Revenue Office at Edinburgh.”

Minstrel noun US /ˈmɪnstrəl/

a singer of folk songs

From this reading “_Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.”

Revenue noun US /ˈrevənuː/

the entire amount of income before any deductions are made

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

personal appearance adjective + noun

In this reading “Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.”

accept a situation verb + article + noun counted as “accept … situation”

In this reading “As his name argued, he was descended from a good stock, but his family had gradually sunk in the scale of life till he was glad to accept a situation in His Majesty's Revenue Office at Edinburgh.”

descended from verb + particle counted as “descend from”

All words in this reading · 70

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading "The Earl was a wrathful man to see."

acceptverbUS /ækˈsept/

consider or hold as true

From this reading As his name argued, he was descended from a good stock, but his family had gradually sunk in the scale of life till he was glad to accept a situation in His Majesty's Revenue Office at Edinburgh.

appearancenounUS /əˈpɪrəns/

outward or visible aspect of a person or thing

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

arguedverbUS /ˈɑːrɡjuːd/

past form of “argue” — present reasons and arguments

AsconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

bigadjectiveUS /bɪɡ/

above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

certainlyadverbUS /ˈsɜːrtənli/

definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

conceitnounUS /kənˈsiːt/

feelings of excessive pride

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

consequentialadjectiveUS /ˌkɑːnsəˈkwenʃəl/

having important issues or results

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

descendedverbUS /dɪˈsendəd/

past form of “descend” — move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way

doorsnounUS /dɔːrz/

plural of “door” — a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

EarlnounUS /ɜːrl/

a British peer ranking below a marquess and above a viscount

From this reading "The Earl was a wrathful man to see."

EdinburghnounUS /ˈedənbəroʊ/

the capital of Scotland; located in the Lothian Region on the south side of the Firth of Forth

exceptio

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

familynounUS /ˈfæməli/

a social unit living together

fewadjectiveUS /fjuː/

a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

findverbUS /faɪnd/

come upon, as if by accident; meet with

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

gentlemannounUS /ˈdʒentəlmən/

a man of refinement

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

giftedadjectiveUS /ˈɡɪftəd/

endowed with talent or talents

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

gladadjectiveUS /ɡlæd/

showing or causing joy and pleasure; especially made happy

goodadjectiveUS /ɡʊd/

having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified

graduallyadverbUS /ˈɡrædʒuːəli/

in a gradual manner

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

intolerableadjectiveUS /ˌɪnˈtɑːlərəbəl/

incapable of being tolerated or endured

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

isauxiliary verbUS /ɪz/

the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

ItpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

LastadjectiveUS /læst/

immediately past

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

LayverbUS /leɪ/

put into a certain place or abstract location

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

Lennox

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

lessenedadjectiveUS /ˈlesənd/

impaired by diminution

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

lifenounUS /laɪf/

a characteristic state or mode of living

livedverbUS /lɪvd/

past form of “live” — be an inhabitant of or reside in

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

Majesty'snounUS /ˈmædʒəstiz/

possessive form of “majesty” — impressiveness in scale or proportion

mannounUS /mæn/

an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)

From this reading "The Earl was a wrathful man to see."

mennounUS /men/

the force of workers available

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

MinstrelnounUS /ˈmɪnstrəl/

a singer of folk songs

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

MrnounUS /ˈmɪstər/

a form of address for a man

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

muchadverbUS /mʌtʃ/

to a great degree or extent

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

nameverbUS /neɪm/

assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to

namedverbUS /neɪmd/

past form of “name” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

OfficenounUS /ˈɔːfɪs/

place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed

oftenadverbUS /ˈɔːfən/

many times at short intervals

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

personaladjectiveUS /ˈpɜːrsɪnəl/

concerning or affecting a particular person or his or her private life and personality

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

probat

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

Ravensworths

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading _Lay of the Last Minstrel._ A few doors from the Ravensworths lived a gentleman named Lennox.

regulam

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

RevenuenounUS /ˈrevənuː/

the entire amount of income before any deductions are made

scalenounUS /skeɪl/

an ordered reference standard

seeverbUS /siː/

perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight

From this reading "The Earl was a wrathful man to see."

situationnounUS /ˌsɪtʃuːˈeɪʃən/

the general state of things; the combination of circumstances at a given time

stocknounUS /stɑːk/

the capital raised by a corporation through the issue of shares entitling holders to an ownership interest

sunkadjectiveUS /sʌŋk/

doomed to extinction

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading "The Earl was a wrathful man to see."

thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

tillprepositionUS /tɪl/

up to a particular time

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading "The Earl was a wrathful man to see."

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading "The Earl was a wrathful man to see."

waynounUS /weɪ/

how something is done or how it happens

From this reading Mr. Lennox was certainly gifted in his personal appearance, but this was in a way much lessened by his intolerable conceit.

wepronounUS /wiː/

the speaker together with one or more other people

From this reading It is not often that we find big men consequential, but Mr. Lennox was the "_exceptio regulam probat_."

wrathfuladjective

vehemently incensed and condemnatory

From this reading "The Earl was a wrathful man to see."

Chapter 4 of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1 by Johannes Scotus holds 146 sentences, grouped into 30 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.

What does chapter 4 of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1 contain?

Chapter 4 holds 146 sentences of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1, unabridged, divided into 30 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 4 of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1 by Johannes Scotus exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 146 sentences, grouped into 30 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.

How do I study chapter 4 of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1?

Work through the 30 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 30 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.

Can chapter 4 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 4 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.

Questions about reading The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1

Common questions about reading The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1 by Johannes Scotus on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1?

Yes. All 3789 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #39982 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1 is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #39982, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1 take to read?

About 315 minutes of reading across 758 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Vocabulary met early in The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1

Words and structures a reader meets early in The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

George: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
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Nations: A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.

Chapter IV

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Vocabulary met early in The Weird of the Wentworths — Vol. 1