Chapter 1 of The Wings of Icarus is here in full — 17 sentences across 4 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Wings of Icarus is here in full — 17 sentences across 4 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
FLETCHER'S HALL, GRAYSMILL, July 18th. _Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you? Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me. It is close upon midnight, and very dark. I can see nothing out of window.
Chapter 1 of The Wings of Icarus is here in full — 17 sentences across 4 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/3 · 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.
dearly loved
From this reading “_Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you?”
a lake in southeastern Germany on the northern side of the Swiss Alps; forms part of the Rhine River
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading “FLETCHER'S HALL, GRAYSMILL, July 18th.”
the month following June and preceding August
From this reading “FLETCHER'S HALL, GRAYSMILL, July 18th.”
the land on which real estate is located
From this reading “Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.”
plural of “lie” — a statement that deviates from or perverts the truth
From this reading “Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.”
12 o'clock at night; the middle of the night
From this reading “It is close upon midnight, and very dark.”
be seated
From this reading “Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind 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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading FLETCHER'S HALL, GRAYSMILL, July 18th.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading _Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you?
at or toward the back of something
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
dearly loved
From this reading _Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you?
to be able to, or to be allowed to
From this reading I can see nothing out of window.
at or within a short distance in space or time or having elements near each other
From this reading It is close upon midnight, and very dark.
a lake in southeastern Germany on the northern side of the Swiss Alps; forms part of the Rhine River
From this reading _Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you?
absence of light or illumination
From this reading It is close upon midnight, and very dark.
dearly loved
From this reading _Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading FLETCHER'S HALL, GRAYSMILL, July 18th.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading FLETCHER'S HALL, GRAYSMILL, July 18th.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading FLETCHER'S HALL, GRAYSMILL, July 18th.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading _Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you?
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It is close upon midnight, and very dark.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It is close upon midnight, and very dark.
the month following June and preceding August
From this reading FLETCHER'S HALL, GRAYSMILL, July 18th.
the land on which real estate is located
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
plural of “lie” — a statement that deviates from or perverts the truth
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
12 o'clock at night; the middle of the night
From this reading It is close upon midnight, and very dark.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading I can see nothing out of window.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I can see nothing out of window.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading I can see nothing out of window.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
express in words
From this reading _Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you?
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading I can see nothing out of window.
used with I and we for the future, or to offer and suggest
From this reading _Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you?
be seated
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird
From this reading Here I sit, in a strange room, in a strange land,--and my life lies behind me.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading _Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you?
a formal word for “on”
From this reading It is close upon midnight, and very dark.
precisely as stated
From this reading It is close upon midnight, and very dark.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading _Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you?
a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air
From this reading I can see nothing out of window.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading _Dear and Beloved Constance_,--What shall I say to you?
Chapter 1 of The Wings of Icarus by Laurence Alma-Tadema holds 17 sentences, grouped into 4 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 17 sentences of The Wings of Icarus, unabridged, divided into 4 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Wings of Icarus by Laurence Alma-Tadema exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 17 sentences, grouped into 4 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 4 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 4 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 Wings of Icarus by Laurence Alma-Tadema on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2158 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #17255 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #17255, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 179 minutes of reading across 432 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Wings of Icarus section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 35 chapters of The Wings of Icarus 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 Wings of Icarus, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
