Chapter 12 of The Woman Who Did is here in full — 125 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of The Woman Who Did is here in full — 125 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
It was a changed London to which Herminia returned. She was homeless, penniless, friendless. Above all she was _déclassée_. The world that had known her now knew her no more. Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
Chapter 12 of The Woman Who Did is here in full — 125 sentences across 25 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/25 · 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.
someone unfortunate without housing
From this reading “She was homeless, penniless, friendless.”
(New Testament) supposed brother of St. James; one of the Apostles who is invoked in prayer when a situation seems hopeless
From this reading “Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.”
plural of “kiss” — the act of caressing with the lips (or an instance thereof)
From this reading “Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.”
not having enough money to pay for necessities
From this reading “She was homeless, penniless, friendless.”
held in check with difficulty
From this reading “Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.”
look at with fixed eyes
From this reading “Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.”
abounding in rocks or stones
From this reading “Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.”
plural of “victoria” — queen of Great Britain and Ireland and empress of India from 1837 to 1901; the last Hanoverian ruler of England (1819-1901)
From this reading “Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.”
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 It was a changed London to which Herminia returned.
higher than, or over, something
From this reading Above all she was _déclassée_.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading Above all she was _déclassée_.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
made or become different in nature or form
From this reading It was a changed London to which Herminia returned.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Above all she was _déclassée_.
excluded from a society
From this reading She was homeless, penniless, friendless.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The world that had known her now knew her no more.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading The world that had known her now knew her no more.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It was a changed London to which Herminia returned.
someone unfortunate without housing
From this reading She was homeless, penniless, friendless.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a changed London to which Herminia returned.
(New Testament) supposed brother of St. James; one of the Apostles who is invoked in prayer when a situation seems hopeless
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
plural of “kiss” — the act of caressing with the lips (or an instance thereof)
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading The world that had known her now knew her no more.
apprehended with certainty
From this reading The world that had known her now knew her no more.
the capital and largest city of England; located on the Thames in southeastern England; financial and industrial and cultural center
From this reading It was a changed London to which Herminia returned.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading The world that had known her now knew her no more.
not any; not one
From this reading The world that had known her now knew her no more.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading The world that had known her now knew her no more.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
not having enough money to pay for necessities
From this reading She was homeless, penniless, friendless.
past form of “return” — go or come back to place, condition, or activity where one has been before
From this reading It was a changed London to which Herminia returned.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She was homeless, penniless, friendless.
held in check with difficulty
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
look at with fixed eyes
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
abounding in rocks or stones
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The world that had known her now knew her no more.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The world that had known her now knew her no more.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It was a changed London to which Herminia returned.
plural of “victoria” — queen of Great Britain and Ireland and empress of India from 1837 to 1901; the last Hanoverian ruler of England (1819-1901)
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was a changed London to which Herminia returned.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading It was a changed London to which Herminia returned.
which person or people
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
in the company of; together with
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
plural of “woman” — an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading Women who had smothered her with their Judas kisses passed her by in their victorias with a stony stare.
everything that exists anywhere
From this reading The world that had known her now knew her no more.
Chapter 12 of The Woman Who Did by Grant Allen holds 125 sentences, grouped into 25 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 12 holds 125 sentences of The Woman Who Did, unabridged, divided into 25 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of The Woman Who Did by Grant Allen exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 125 sentences, grouped into 25 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 25 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 25 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 12 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 Who Did by Grant Allen on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2354 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #4396 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #4396, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 196 minutes of reading across 471 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Woman Who Did section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 23 chapters of The Woman Who Did 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 Who Did, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
