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.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
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.
That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm. 'Twill shield thee from the snow. MARY (_rises_). God's blessing on thy little head, sweet child! Come, Joseph, for the wind now waxes wild.
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 40/70 · 5 reading units · Lines 196–200
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.
the formal act of approving
From this reading “God's blessing on thy little head, sweet child!”
possessive form of “god” — the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions
From this reading “God's blessing on thy little head, sweet child!”
plural of “rise” — a growth in strength or number or importance
a protective covering or structure
From this reading “'Twill shield thee from the snow.”
offering safety; well protected or concealed
From this reading “That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.”
resistant to change of position or condition
From this reading “That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.”
a weave used to produce the effect of parallel diagonal ribs
From this reading “'Twill shield thee from the snow.”
plural of “wax” — any of various substances of either mineral origin or plant or animal origin; they are solid at normal temperatures and insoluble in water
From this reading “Come, Joseph, for the wind now waxes wild.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
the formal act of approving
From this reading God's blessing on thy little head, sweet child!
a young person of either sex
From this reading God's blessing on thy little head, sweet child!
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Come, Joseph, for the wind now waxes wild.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Come, Joseph, for the wind now waxes wild.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading 'Twill shield thee from the snow.
the side that is forward or prominent
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
possessive form of “god” — the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions
From this reading God's blessing on thy little head, sweet child!
the upper part of the human body or the front part of the body in animals; contains the face and brains
From this reading God's blessing on thy little head, sweet child!
leader of the Nez Perce in their retreat from United States troops (1840-1904)
From this reading Come, Joseph, for the wind now waxes wild.
a metric unit of capacity, formerly defined as the volume of one kilogram of pure water under standard conditions; now equal to 1,000 cubic centimeters (or approximately 1.75 pints)
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
the mother of Jesus; Christians refer to her as the Virgin Mary; she is especially honored by Roman Catholics
From this reading MARY (_rises_).
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Come, Joseph, for the wind now waxes wild.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading God's blessing on thy little head, sweet child!
plural of “point” — a geometric element that has position but no extension
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
plural of “rise” — a growth in strength or number or importance
From this reading MARY (_rises_).
a protective covering or structure
From this reading 'Twill shield thee from the snow.
precipitation falling from clouds in the form of ice crystals
From this reading 'Twill shield thee from the snow.
offering safety; well protected or concealed
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
resistant to change of position or condition
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
having or denoting the characteristic taste of sugar
From this reading God's blessing on thy little head, sweet child!
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
an old word for “you”, as the object, speaking to one person
From this reading 'Twill shield thee from the snow.
in or at that place or location
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
an old word for “your”, speaking to one person
From this reading God's blessing on thy little head, sweet child!
plural of “ti” — a light strong grey lustrous corrosion-resistant metallic element used in strong lightweight alloys (as for airplane parts); the main sources are rutile and ilmenite
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
a weave used to produce the effect of parallel diagonal ribs
From this reading 'Twill shield thee from the snow.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
having or producing a comfortable and agreeable degree of heat or imparting or maintaining heat
From this reading That little stable there upon the loe, (_Points to L front._) 'Tis snug and warm.
plural of “wax” — any of various substances of either mineral origin or plant or animal origin; they are solid at normal temperatures and insoluble in water
From this reading Come, Joseph, for the wind now waxes wild.
marked by extreme lack of restraint or control
From this reading Come, Joseph, for the wind now waxes wild.
air moving (sometimes with considerable force) from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure
From this reading Come, Joseph, for the wind now waxes wild.
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.
