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.
THOMAS (_pointing over the manger_). Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far? 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem! TIMOTHY. A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
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 49/70 · 5 reading units · Lines 241–245
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 town in eastern Pennsylvania on the Lehigh River to the northwest of Philadelphia; an important center for steel production
From this reading “'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!”
comparative of “bright” — emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
From this reading “A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.”
an imperfection in an object or machine
From this reading “A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.”
a container (usually in a barn or stable) from which cattle or horses feed
plural of “shine” — the quality of being bright and sending out rays of light
From this reading “'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!”
a very small spot
From this reading “A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.”
(linguistics) the form of a word after all affixes are removed
From this reading “'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!”
grass with long cylindrical spikes grown in northern United States and Europe for hay
From this reading “TIMOTHY.”
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 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
higher than, or over, something
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
a town in eastern Pennsylvania on the Lehigh River to the northwest of Philadelphia; an important center for steel production
From this reading 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
produce or yield flowers
From this reading 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
comparative of “bright” — emitting or reflecting light readily or in large amounts
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
an old form of “do”, used with “thou”
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
at any time
From this reading 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father)
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
an imperfection in an object or machine
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
the phonological or orthographic sound or appearance of a word that can be used to describe or identify something
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
a container (usually in a barn or stable) from which cattle or horses feed
From this reading THOMAS (_pointing over the manger_).
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
throughout a period of time
From this reading 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
above and across; more than
From this reading THOMAS (_pointing over the manger_).
being complete of its kind and without defect or blemish
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
-ing form of “point” — indicate a place, direction, person, or thing; either spatially or figuratively
From this reading THOMAS (_pointing over the manger_).
cut with a saw
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
plural of “shine” — the quality of being bright and sending out rays of light
From this reading 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
marked by exceptional merit
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
a very small spot
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
be standing; be upright
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
(astronomy) a celestial body of hot gases that radiates energy derived from thermonuclear reactions in the interior
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
(linguistics) the form of a word after all affixes are removed
From this reading 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THOMAS (_pointing over the manger_).
United States clockmaker who introduced mass production (1785-1859)
From this reading THOMAS (_pointing over the manger_).
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
grass with long cylindrical spikes grown in northern United States and Europe for hay
From this reading TIMOTHY.
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 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
an urban area with a fixed boundary that is smaller than a city
From this reading Look, father, dost thou see that shining star That seems to stand above the town so far?
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
extraordinarily good or great; used especially as intensifiers
From this reading 'Tis like a wondrous blossom on a stem, And see, it ever shines o'er Bethlehem!
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.
