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The wonders of science
The wonders of science

Chapter XVII

Chapter 17 of The wonders of science is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

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Context Illustration Reading 1/26 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
THE WONDERS OF COLOUR AND PHOTOGRAPHY.
The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.
He had ascertained— 1.
That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.
2.
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LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

The wonders of science

Chapter XVII

Chapter 17 of The wonders of science is here in full — 130 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/26 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
THE WONDERS OF COLOUR AND PHOTOGRAPHY.
/ðə ˈwʌndərz ʌv ˈkʌlər ənd fəˈtɑːɡrəfi/
Line 2
The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.
Line 3
He had ascertained— 1.
Line 4
That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.
Line 5
2.

Learner Dictionary

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.

ascertained adjective US /ˌæsərˈteɪnd/

discovered or determined by scientific observation

From this reading “He had ascertained— 1.”

divisible adjective US /dɪˈvɪzəbəl/

capable of being or liable to be divided or separated

From this reading “That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.”

investigations noun US /ˌɪnvestəˈɡeɪʃənz/

plural of “investigation” — an inquiry into unfamiliar or questionable activities

From this reading “The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.”

luminous adjective US /ˈluːmənəs/

softly bright or radiant

philosopher noun US /fəˈlɑːsəfər/

a specialist in philosophy

From this reading “The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.”

photography noun US /fəˈtɑːɡrəfi/

the act of taking and printing photographs

From this reading “THE WONDERS OF COLOUR AND PHOTOGRAPHY.”

substances noun US /ˈsʌbstənsəz/

plural of “substance” — the real physical matter of which a person or thing consists

From this reading “That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.”

wonders noun US /ˈwʌndərz/

plural of “wonder” — the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising

From this reading “THE WONDERS OF COLOUR AND PHOTOGRAPHY.”

All words in this reading · 35

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.

1

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading He had ascertained— 1.

2

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading 2.

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(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 That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

ANDconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading THE WONDERS OF COLOUR AND PHOTOGRAPHY.

areauxiliary verbUS /ɑːr/

the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

ascertainedadjectiveUS /ˌæsərˈteɪnd/

discovered or determined by scientific observation

From this reading He had ascertained— 1.

bodiesnounUS /ˈbɑːdiz/

plural of “body” — the entire physical structure of an organism (an animal, plant, or human being)

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

classesnounUS /ˈklæsəz/

plural of “class” — a collection of things sharing a common attribute

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

COLOURadjectiveUS /ˈkʌlər/

having or capable of producing colors

From this reading THE WONDERS OF COLOUR AND PHOTOGRAPHY.

completedadjectiveUS /kəmˈpliːtəd/

successfully completed or brought to an end

From this reading The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.

concerningverbUS /kənˈsɜːrnɪŋ/

-ing form of “concern” — be relevant to

From this reading The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.

divisibleadjectiveUS /dɪˈvɪzəbəl/

capable of being or liable to be divided or separated

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.

HepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading He had ascertained— 1.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

investigationsnounUS /ˌɪnvestəˈɡeɪʃənz/

plural of “investigation” — an inquiry into unfamiliar or questionable activities

From this reading The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.

lightadjectiveUS /laɪt/

of comparatively little physical weight or density

From this reading The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.

luminousadjectiveUS /ˈluːmənəs/

softly bright or radiant

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

naturenounUS /ˈneɪtʃər/

the essential qualities or characteristics by which something is recognized

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

non-luminous

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

nowadverbUS /naʊ/

in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events

From this reading The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.

OFprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading THE WONDERS OF COLOUR AND PHOTOGRAPHY.

philosophernounUS /fəˈlɑːsəfər/

a specialist in philosophy

From this reading The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.

PHOTOGRAPHYnounUS /fəˈtɑːɡrəfi/

the act of taking and printing photographs

From this reading THE WONDERS OF COLOUR AND PHOTOGRAPHY.

reflexionnoun

the phenomenon of a propagating wave (light or sound) being thrown back from a surface

From this reading The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.

refractionnoun

the change in direction of a propagating wave (light or sound) when passing from one medium to another

From this reading The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.

substancesnounUS /ˈsʌbstənsəz/

plural of “substance” — the real physical matter of which a person or thing consists

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

ThatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading THE WONDERS OF COLOUR AND PHOTOGRAPHY.

twonounUS /tuː/

the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

viz

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading That all substances in nature are divisible into two classes, viz. _luminous_ and _non-luminous_ bodies.

WONDERSnounUS /ˈwʌndərz/

plural of “wonder” — the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising

From this reading THE WONDERS OF COLOUR AND PHOTOGRAPHY.

youngadjectiveUS /jʌŋ/

(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth

From this reading The young philosopher had now completed his investigations concerning the refraction and reflexion of light.

Chapter 17 of The wonders of science by Henry Mayhew holds 130 sentences, grouped into 26 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.

What does chapter 17 of The wonders of science contain?

Chapter 17 holds 130 sentences of The wonders of science, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 17 of The wonders of science by Henry Mayhew exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 130 sentences, grouped into 26 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.

How do I study chapter 17 of The wonders of science?

Work through the 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 26 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.

Can chapter 17 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 17 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.

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