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.
They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_). Glory to God in the highest! Fear not! For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy. For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
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 63/70 · 5 reading units · Lines 311–315
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.
plural of “chant” — a repetitive song in which as many syllables as necessary are assigned to a single tone
From this reading “They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).”
a teacher and prophet born in Bethlehem and active in Nazareth; his life and sermons form the basis for Christianity (circa 4 BC - AD 29)
From this reading “For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.”
patron saint of Wales (circa 520-600)
From this reading “For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.”
superlative of “high” — greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading “Glory to God in the highest!”
the act of assuming or maintaining a reclining position
From this reading “They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).”
a female singer
From this reading “They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).”
information about recent and important events
From this reading “For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy.”
not seen or perceived
From this reading “They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants 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 For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
see with attention
From this reading For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy.
brought into existence
From this reading For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy.
plural of “chant” — a repetitive song in which as many syllables as necessary are assigned to a single tone
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
a teacher and prophet born in Bethlehem and active in Nazareth; his life and sermons form the basis for Christianity (circa 4 BC - AD 29)
From this reading For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
a large and densely populated urban area; may include several independent administrative districts
From this reading For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
patron saint of Wales (circa 520-600)
From this reading For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event
From this reading Fear not!
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy.
showing or causing joy and pleasure; especially made happy
From this reading For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy.
a state of high honor
From this reading Glory to God in the highest!
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 Glory to God in the highest!
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy.
superlative of “high” — greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading Glory to God in the highest!
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Glory to God in the highest!
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
the emotion of great happiness
From this reading For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy.
hear with intention
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
terms referring to the Judeo-Christian God
From this reading For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Fear not!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
the act of assuming or maintaining a reclining position
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
a teacher and prophet born in Bethlehem and active in Nazareth; his life and sermons form the basis for Christianity (circa 4 BC - AD 29)
From this reading For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
with low volume
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
a female singer
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
having a supporting base
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Glory to God in the highest!
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
information about recent and important events
From this reading For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Glory to God in the highest!
not seen or perceived
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
an old word for “to”
From this reading For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading For unto you is born this day In the city of David, a Saviour Which is Christ, the Lord.
in a curious and questioning manner
From this reading They listen wonderingly, standing or reclining._) VOICE (_an unseen soprano chants softly_).
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading For behold I bring you glad tidings Of great joy.
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.
