Chapter 1 of The White Devil is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 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 Devil is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Cam. The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run. Flam. I hope you do not think---- Cam. That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
Chapter 1 of The White Devil is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 30/80 · 5 reading units · Lines 146–150
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 partiality that prevents objective consideration of an issue or situation
From this reading “That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.”
goods or money obtained illegally
From this reading “That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.”
a round vessel that is open at the top; used chiefly for holding food or liquids
From this reading “The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.”
a cricketer who delivers the ball to the batsman in cricket
From this reading “The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.”
a river in east central England that flows past Cambridge to join the Ouse River
From this reading “Cam.”
plural of “lean” — the property possessed by a line or surface that departs from the vertical
From this reading “The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.”
a titled peer of the realm
From this reading “That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.”
with passion
From this reading “The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.”
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 That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
a partiality that prevents objective consideration of an issue or situation
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
goods or money obtained illegally
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
a round vessel that is open at the top; used chiefly for holding food or liquids
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
a cricketer who delivers the ball to the batsman in cricket
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
a river in east central England that flows past Cambridge to join the Ouse River
From this reading Cam.
either side of the face below the eyes
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading I hope you do not think---- Cam.
a British peer of the highest rank
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
characterized by a firm and humorless belief in the validity of your opinions
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
very good; of the highest quality
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
having made preparations
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
a strong belief in a supernatural power or powers that control human destiny
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Flam.
an old form of “has”
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
a specific instance of feeling hopeful
From this reading I hope you do not think---- Cam.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
move forward by leaps and bounds
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
plural of “lean” — the property possessed by a line or surface that departs from the vertical
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
an artist of consummate skill
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
an adulterous woman; a woman who has an ongoing extramarital sexual relationship with a man
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
used to form the superlative
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
a titled peer of the realm
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading I hope you do not think---- Cam.
with passion
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
to become aware of through the senses
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
move fast by using one's feet, with one foot off the ground at any given time
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
express gratitude or show appreciation to
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading I hope you do not think---- Cam.
precisely as stated
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
plural of “visit” — the act of going to see some person or place or thing for a short time
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
in the company of; together with
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading That nobleman bowl booty? faith, his cheek Hath a most excellent bias: it would fain Jump with my mistress.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I hope you do not think---- Cam.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading The duke your master visits me, I thank him; And I perceive how, like an earnest bowler, He very passionately leans that way he should have his bowl run.
Chapter 1 of The White Devil by John Webster holds 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 403 sentences of The White Devil, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The White Devil by John Webster exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 Devil by John Webster on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3118 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #12915 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #12915, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 259 minutes of reading across 624 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The White Devil section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of The White Devil 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 Devil, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
