Chapter 13 of The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 1 is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XIII
Chapter 13 of The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 1 is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory. The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories. But what was the Goose? He was evidently _sitting_ for a something. D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
Chapter 13 of The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 1 is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
plural of “allegory” — a short moral story (often with animal characters)
From this reading “The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.”
amazingly impressive; suggestive of the flashing of lightning
From this reading “Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.”
called forth from a latent or potential state by stimulation
From this reading “The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.”
web-footed long-necked typically gregarious migratory aquatic birds usually larger and less aquatic than ducks
From this reading “But what was the Goose?”
cause to come to know personally
From this reading “D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.”
prolific Flemish baroque painter; knighted by the English king Charles I (1577-1640)
From this reading “The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.”
plural of “swan” — stately heavy-bodied aquatic bird with very long neck and usually white plumage as adult
the longest river in England; flows eastward through London to the North Sea
From this reading “D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
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 He was evidently _sitting_ for a something.
not being in a specified place
From this reading Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.
plural of “allegory” — a short moral story (often with animal characters)
From this reading The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But what was the Goose?
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
a fat-soluble vitamin that prevents rickets
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
amazingly impressive; suggestive of the flashing of lightning
From this reading Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.
any of various large keen-sighted diurnal birds of prey noted for their broad wings and strong soaring flight
From this reading Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.
unmistakably (“plain” is often used informally for “plainly”)
From this reading He was evidently _sitting_ for a something.
called forth from a latent or potential state by stimulation
From this reading The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.
the state or quality of being widely honored and acclaimed
From this reading Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.
(of a number) having a fixed and unchanging value
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading He was evidently _sitting_ for a something.
a state of high honor
From this reading Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.
web-footed long-necked typically gregarious migratory aquatic birds usually larger and less aquatic than ducks
From this reading But what was the Goose?
any number of entities (members) considered as a unit
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.
the -ing form of “have”
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was evidently _sitting_ for a something.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
having much knowledge or education
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
cause to come to know personally
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
immediately past
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.
having or showing great strength or force or intensity
From this reading The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.
and not; used after a negative to add a second negative
From this reading Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.
plural of “river” — a large natural stream of water (larger than a creek)
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
of or relating to or indicative of or issued or performed by a king or queen or other monarch
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
prolific Flemish baroque painter; knighted by the English king Charles I (1577-1640)
From this reading The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.
relative darkness caused by light rays being intercepted by an opaque body
From this reading The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.
(photography) the act of assuming a certain position (as for a photograph or portrait)
From this reading He was evidently _sitting_ for a something.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading He was evidently _sitting_ for a something.
plural of “swan” — stately heavy-bodied aquatic bird with very long neck and usually white plumage as adult
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
the longest river in England; flows eastward through London to the North Sea
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The shade of Rubens might have evoked the mighty allegories.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
a successful ending of a struggle or contest
From this reading Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading But what was the Goose?
in the company of; together with
From this reading Glory with her dazzling Eagle was not absent, nor Fame, nor Victory.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading D. at last informed me, that having fixed upon a group of rivers, he could not introduce the Royal Thames without his _swans_.
Chapter 13 of The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 1 by Charles Lamb holds 401 sentences, grouped into 81 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 13 holds 401 sentences of The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 1, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 13 of The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 1 by Charles Lamb exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 401 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 13 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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Yes. All 8384 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #40988 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #40988, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1677 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 1 section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 21 chapters of The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 1 to begin.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 1, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
