Chapter 16 of The Woman in White is here in full — 320 sentences across 64 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVI
Chapter 16 of The Woman in White is here in full — 320 sentences across 64 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions. “How should I know his secrets?” I said evasively. “I wonder if the housekeeper knows?” she persisted. “Certainly not,” I replied.
Chapter 16 of The Woman in White is here in full — 320 sentences across 64 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/64 · 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.
a servant who is employed to perform domestic task in a household
From this reading ““I wonder if the housekeeper knows?” she persisted.”
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading ““I wonder if the housekeeper knows?” she persisted.”
past form of “persist” — continue to exist
From this reading ““I wonder if the housekeeper knows?” she persisted.”
plural of “secret” — something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)
From this reading ““How should I know his secrets?””
plural of “suspicion” — an impression that something might be the case
From this reading “After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.”
inflected form of “undergo” — pass through
From this reading “After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.”
not disposed or inclined toward
From this reading “After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.”
the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
From this reading ““I wonder if the housekeeper knows?” she persisted.”
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.
later than; following
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading “Certainly not,” I replied.
with evasion; in an evasive manner
From this reading I said evasively.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading “How should I know his secrets?”
a servant who is employed to perform domestic task in a household
From this reading “I wonder if the housekeeper knows?” she persisted.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “How should I know his secrets?”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “I wonder if the housekeeper knows?” she persisted.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “How should I know his secrets?”
plural of “know” — the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
From this reading “I wonder if the housekeeper knows?” she persisted.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “Certainly not,” I replied.
past form of “persist” — continue to exist
From this reading “I wonder if the housekeeper knows?” she persisted.
inflected form of “reply” — react verbally
From this reading “Certainly not,” I replied.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading I said evasively.
plural of “secret” — something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)
From this reading “How should I know his secrets?”
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading “How should I know his secrets?”
plural of “suspicion” — an impression that something might be the case
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
express in words
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “I wonder if the housekeeper knows?” she persisted.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
inflected form of “undergo” — pass through
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
not disposed or inclined toward
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading After what she had undergone that morning, I was unwilling to tell her my suspicions.
the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
From this reading “I wonder if the housekeeper knows?” she persisted.
Chapter 16 of The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins holds 320 sentences, grouped into 64 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 16 holds 320 sentences of The Woman in White, unabridged, divided into 64 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 320 sentences, grouped into 64 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 64 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 64 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 16 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 White by Wilkie Collins on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 13004 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #583 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #583, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2601 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Woman in White section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of The Woman in White 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 White, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
