Chapter 1 of The Wide, Wide World is here in full — 383 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Wide, Wide World is here in full — 383 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Breaking the News. "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?" "I cannot tell you just now. Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me." "Mamma!
Chapter 1 of The Wide, Wide World is here in full — 383 sentences across 77 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/76 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5
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.
the act of breaking something
From this reading “Breaking the News.”
a comprehensive term for any proceeding in a court of law whereby an individual seeks a legal remedy
From this reading “"Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"”
informal terms for a mother
From this reading “"Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"”
information about recent and important events
From this reading “Breaking the News.”
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading “"Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"”
select carefully from a group
From this reading “Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."”
cloak consisting of an oblong piece of cloth used to cover the head and shoulders
From this reading “Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."”
distribute or disperse widely
From this reading “Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."
the act of breaking something
From this reading Breaking the News.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I cannot tell you just now.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."
and nothing more
From this reading "I cannot tell you just now.
a comprehensive term for any proceeding in a court of law whereby an individual seeks a legal remedy
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
informal terms for a mother
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
information about recent and important events
From this reading Breaking the News.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading "I cannot tell you just now.
above and across; more than
From this reading Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."
an informal term for a father; probably derived from baby talk
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
select carefully from a group
From this reading Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."
a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
cloak consisting of an oblong piece of cloth used to cover the head and shoulders
From this reading Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."
distribute or disperse widely
From this reading Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."
express in words
From this reading "I cannot tell you just now.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Breaking the News.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Ellen, pick up that shawl and spread it over me."
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Mamma, what was that I heard papa saying to you this morning about his lawsuit?"
Chapter 1 of The Wide, Wide World by Susan Warner holds 383 sentences, grouped into 77 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 383 sentences of The Wide, Wide World, unabridged, divided into 77 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Wide, Wide World by Susan Warner exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 383 sentences, grouped into 77 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 77 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 77 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 Wide, Wide World by Susan Warner on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 14581 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #18689 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #18689, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2917 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Wide, Wide World section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 32 chapters of The Wide, Wide World 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 Wide, Wide World, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
