Chapter 1 of The Woman in Black is here in full — 195 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Woman in Black is here in full — 195 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed. Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument. "Who is that?" he said. "Who?... I can't hear you ...
Chapter 1 of The Woman in Black is here in full — 195 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
past form of “buzz” — make a buzzing sound
From this reading “In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.”
in mental comfort; without stress
From this reading “In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.”
provided with whatever is necessary for a purpose (as furniture or equipment or authority)
From this reading “In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.”
a device that requires skill for proper use
From this reading “Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.”
plural of “office” — place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed
From this reading “In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.”
anything (such as a document or a phonograph record or a photograph) providing permanent evidence of or information about past events
a person who is head of an administrative department of government
From this reading “Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.”
electronic equipment that converts sound into electrical signals that can be transmitted over distances and then converts received signals back into sounds
From this reading “In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.”
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 Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
past form of “buzz” — make a buzzing sound
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I can't hear you ...
in mental comfort; without stress
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
provided with whatever is necessary for a purpose (as furniture or equipment or authority)
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Who is that?" he said.
perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading I can't hear you ...
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I can't hear you ...
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
a device that requires skill for proper use
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Who is that?" he said.
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
the use of movements (especially of the hands) to communicate familiar or prearranged signals
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
a form of address for a man
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
plural of “office” — place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
and nothing more
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
above and across; more than
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
a writing implement with a point from which ink flows
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
anything (such as a document or a phonograph record or a photograph) providing permanent evidence of or information about past events
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Who is that?" he said.
a person who is head of an administrative department of government
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
a soft white precious univalent metallic element having the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal; occurs in argentite and in free form; used in coins and jewelry and tableware and photography
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
term of address for a man
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
a set of data arranged in rows and columns
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
electronic equipment that converts sound into electrical signals that can be transmitted over distances and then converts received signals back into sounds
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Who is that?" he said.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading In the only comfortably furnished room in the offices of the _Record_, the telephone on Sir James Molloy's table buzzed.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
which person or people
From this reading "Who is that?" he said.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading Sir James made a motion with his pen, and Mr. Silver, his secretary, left his work and came over to the instrument.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading I can't hear you ...
Chapter 1 of The Woman in Black by E. C. (Edmund Clerihew) Bentley holds 195 sentences, grouped into 39 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 195 sentences of The Woman in Black, unabridged, divided into 39 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Woman in Black by E. C. (Edmund Clerihew) Bentley exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 195 sentences, grouped into 39 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 39 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 39 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 Woman in Black by E. C. (Edmund Clerihew) Bentley on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3964 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21854 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21854, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 330 minutes of reading across 793 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Woman in Black section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 15 chapters of The Woman in Black 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 Woman in Black, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
