Chapter 1 of The White Christmas and other Merry is here in full — 353 sentences across 71 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The White Christmas and other Merry is here in full — 353 sentences across 71 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await! ISAAC. Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away! (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly. After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
Chapter 1 of The White Christmas and other Merry is here in full — 353 sentences across 71 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 20/70 · 5 reading units · Lines 96–100
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.
look forward to the probable occurrence of
From this reading “Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await!”
a chorus that sings as part of a religious ceremony
From this reading “(_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.”
third-person singular of “enter” — to come or go into
plural of “flock” — a church congregation guided by a pastor
From this reading “Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await!”
(Old Testament) the second patriarch; son of Abraham and Sarah who was offered by Abraham as a sacrifice to God; father of Jacob and Esau
From this reading “ISAAC.”
the back of a military formation or procession
From this reading “(_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.”
plural of “repeat” — an event that repeats
From this reading “(_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.”
a fixed number of lines of verse forming a unit of a poem
From this reading “(_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.”
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 After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
later than; following
From this reading After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
look forward to the probable occurrence of
From this reading Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await!
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
plural of “call” — a telephone connection
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
a chorus that sings as part of a religious ceremony
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
the act of drawing spatially closer to something
From this reading After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
not accessible to view
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
third-person singular of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
plural of “flock” — a church congregation guided by a pastor
From this reading Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await!
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
the side that is forward or prominent
From this reading After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
overly eager speed (and possible carelessness)
From this reading Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await!
plural of “hill” — a local and well-defined elevation of the land
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await!
a hotel providing overnight lodging for travelers
From this reading After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
(Old Testament) the second patriarch; son of Abraham and Sarah who was offered by Abraham as a sacrifice to God; father of Jacob and Esau
From this reading ISAAC.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await!
engage in
From this reading Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await!
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something
From this reading After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
on the contrary
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
the back of a military formation or procession
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
plural of “repeat” — an event that repeats
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
precisely, exactly
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
a deliberate discourteous act (usually as an expression of anger or disapproval)
From this reading After a slight pause_ DEBORAH _enters from the inn._ DEBORAH (_coming down to right front_).
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
with low volume
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
a male human offspring
From this reading Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await!
a short musical composition with words
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
a fixed number of lines of verse forming a unit of a poem
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Make haste, my son, I know the flocks await!
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading (_They go out at rear right._) _The concealed choir repeats the first stanza of the song softly.
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
in spite of the fact that
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
consistent with fact or reality; not false
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading Thou speakest true, though I would rather stay, Our duty calls, so to the hills, away!
Chapter 1 of The White Christmas and other Merry by Walter Ben Hare holds 353 sentences, grouped into 71 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 353 sentences of The White Christmas and other Merry, unabridged, divided into 71 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The White Christmas and other Merry by Walter Ben Hare exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 353 sentences, grouped into 71 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 71 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 71 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 White Christmas and other Merry by Walter Ben Hare on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4783 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #19826 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #19826, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 398 minutes of reading across 957 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The White Christmas and other Merry section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of The White Christmas and other Merry 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 White Christmas and other Merry, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
