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The White Ladies of Worcester
The White Ladies of Worcester

Chapter VIII · Chapter 8

Chapter 8 of The White Ladies of Worcester is here in full — 203 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

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Context Illustration Reading 1/40 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
ALAS, THE PITY OF IT!
At length the Prioress spoke.
"Alas," she said, "the pity of it!
Ah, the cruel, _cruel_ pity of it!"
Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

The White Ladies of Worcester

Chapter VIII · Chapter 8

Chapter 8 of The White Ladies of Worcester is here in full — 203 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/40 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
ALAS, THE PITY OF IT!
/əˈlæs ðə ˈpɪti ʌv ɪt/
Line 2
At length the Prioress spoke.
Line 3
"Alas," she said, "the pity of it!
/əˈlæs ʃiː sed ðə ˈpɪti ʌv ɪt/
Line 4
Ah, the cruel, _cruel_ pity of it!"
Line 5
Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.
/hɜːr vɔɪs soʊ swiːt ənd ˈtendər jet soʊ ˈhoʊpləs ɪn ðə ənˈkwestʃənɪŋ faɪˈnæləti ʌv ɪts rəˈɡret strʌk koʊld əˈpɑːn ðə hɑːrt ʌv ðə naɪt/

Learner Dictionary

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.

alas exclamation US /əˈlæs/

used to show sadness, pity, or regret

From this reading “ALAS, THE PITY OF IT!”

cruel adjective US /ˈkruːəl/

(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering

From this reading “Ah, the cruel, _cruel_ pity of it!"”

finality noun US /faɪˈnæləti/

the quality of being final or definitely settled

From this reading “Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.”

hopeless adjective US /ˈhoʊpləs/

without hope because there seems to be no possibility of comfort or success

From this reading “Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.”

Knight noun US /naɪt/

originally a person of noble birth trained to arms and chivalry; today in Great Britain a person honored by the sovereign for personal merit

From this reading “Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.”

regret verb US /rəˈɡret/

feel remorse for; feel sorry for; be contrite about

From this reading “Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.”

tender adjective US /ˈtendər/

given to sympathy or gentleness or sentimentality

From this reading “Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.”

unquestioning adjective US /ənˈkwestʃənɪŋ/

not inclined to ask questions

From this reading “Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.”

All words in this reading · 31

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.

Ah

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Ah, the cruel, _cruel_ pity of it!"

ALASexclamationUS /əˈlæs/

used to show sadness, pity, or regret

From this reading ALAS, THE PITY OF IT!

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

AtprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading At length the Prioress spoke.

coldadjectiveUS /koʊld/

having a low or inadequate temperature or feeling a sensation of coldness or having been made cold by e.g. ice or refrigeration

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

crueladjectiveUS /ˈkruːəl/

(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering

From this reading Ah, the cruel, _cruel_ pity of it!"

finalitynounUS /faɪˈnæləti/

the quality of being final or definitely settled

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

heartnounUS /hɑːrt/

the locus of feelings and intuitions

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

HerdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

hopelessadjectiveUS /ˈhoʊpləs/

without hope because there seems to be no possibility of comfort or success

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

ITpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading ALAS, THE PITY OF IT!

itsdeterminerUS /ɪts/

belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

KnightnounUS /naɪt/

originally a person of noble birth trained to arms and chivalry; today in Great Britain a person honored by the sovereign for personal merit

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

lengthnounUS /leŋkθ/

the linear extent in space from one end to the other; the longest dimension of something that is fixed in place

From this reading At length the Prioress spoke.

OFprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading ALAS, THE PITY OF IT!

PITYnounUS /ˈpɪti/

a feeling of sympathy and sorrow for the misfortunes of others

From this reading ALAS, THE PITY OF IT!

Prioressnoun

the superior of a group of nuns

From this reading At length the Prioress spoke.

regretverbUS /rəˈɡret/

feel remorse for; feel sorry for; be contrite about

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

saidadjectiveUS /sed/

being the one previously mentioned or spoken of

From this reading "Alas," she said, "the pity of it!

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading "Alas," she said, "the pity of it!

soconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

spokenounUS /spoʊk/

support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim

From this reading At length the Prioress spoke.

struckadjectiveUS /strʌk/

(used in combination) affected by something overwhelming

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

sweetadjectiveUS /swiːt/

having or denoting the characteristic taste of sugar

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

tenderadjectiveUS /ˈtendər/

given to sympathy or gentleness or sentimentality

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading ALAS, THE PITY OF IT!

unquestioningadjectiveUS /ənˈkwestʃənɪŋ/

not inclined to ask questions

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/

a formal word for “on”

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

voicenounUS /vɔɪs/

the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

yetconjunctionUS /jet/

but in spite of that

From this reading Her voice, so sweet and tender, yet so hopeless in the unquestioning finality of its regret, struck cold upon the heart of the Knight.

Chapter 8 of The White Ladies of Worcester by Florence L. (Florence Louisa) Barclay holds 203 sentences, grouped into 41 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.

What does chapter 8 of The White Ladies of Worcester contain?

Chapter 8 holds 203 sentences of The White Ladies of Worcester, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 8 of The White Ladies of Worcester by Florence L. (Florence Louisa) Barclay exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 203 sentences, grouped into 41 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.

How do I study chapter 8 of The White Ladies of Worcester?

Work through the 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 41 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.

Can chapter 8 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 8 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.

Questions about reading The White Ladies of Worcester

Common questions about reading The White Ladies of Worcester by Florence L. (Florence Louisa) Barclay on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of The White Ladies of Worcester?

Yes. All 6898 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #16368 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of The White Ladies of Worcester is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #16368, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does The White Ladies of Worcester take to read?

About 574 minutes of reading across 1380 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read The White Ladies of Worcester section by section

How to work through The White Ladies of Worcester section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 40 chapters of The White Ladies of Worcester to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

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Vocabulary met early in The White Ladies of Worcester

Words and structures a reader meets early in The White Ladies of Worcester, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Antony
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The White Ladies of Worcester; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Shuffled
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The White Ladies of Worcester; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Slowly
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The White Ladies of Worcester; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Shadow
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The White Ladies of Worcester; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.