Chapter 1 of The White Christmas and other Merry is here in full — 355 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 — 355 sentences across 71 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
TIMOTHY. A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw. SIMEON. A stranger star! It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.
Chapter 1 of The White Christmas and other Merry is here in full — 355 sentences across 71 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 50/71 · 5 reading units · Lines 246–250
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.
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.”
inflected form of “shine” — be bright by reflecting or casting light
From this reading “It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.”
(Old Testament) the 2nd son of Jacob and one of the 12 patriarchs of Israel
From this reading “SIMEON.”
a very small spot
From this reading “A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.”
resistant to change of position or condition
From this reading “It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.”
(astronomy) a celestial body of hot gases that radiates energy derived from thermonuclear reactions in the interior
From this reading “A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.”
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 A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
higher than, or over, something
From this reading It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.
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.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.
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 It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.
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.
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.
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.
cut with a saw
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
inflected form of “shine” — be bright by reflecting or casting light
From this reading It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.
(Old Testament) the 2nd son of Jacob and one of the 12 patriarchs of Israel
From this reading SIMEON.
a very small spot
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
resistant to change of position or condition
From this reading It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.
(astronomy) a celestial body of hot gases that radiates energy derived from thermonuclear reactions in the interior
From this reading A brighter star, I'm sure I never saw-- And perfect form, without a speck or flaw.
not in physical motion
From this reading It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.
anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading A stranger star!
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 It never shone before, It standeth still above that stable door.
grass with long cylindrical spikes grown in northern United States and Europe for hay
From this reading TIMOTHY.
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.
Chapter 1 of The White Christmas and other Merry by Walter Ben Hare holds 355 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 355 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 355 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 0 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #? are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #?, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 5 minutes of reading across 0 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 0 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.
