Chapter 4 of The Wound Dresser is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Wound Dresser is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
WALT. XXIII _Washington, Sept. 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right. I have written to Han and George and sent George papers. Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
Chapter 4 of The Wound Dresser 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.
worthy of acceptance or satisfactory
From this reading “15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.”
United States general in the American Civil War who was defeated by Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Fredericksburg (1824-1881)
From this reading “Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?”
imperial dynasty that ruled China (most of the time from 206 BC to AD 220) and expanded its boundaries and developed its bureaucracy; remembered as one of the great eras of Chinese civilization
From this reading “I have written to Han and George and sent George papers.”
a state in east central United States; a border state during the American Civil War; famous for breeding race horses
From this reading “Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?”
affix in a public place or for public notice
From this reading “15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.”
formality and propriety of manner
From this reading “Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?”
the month following August and preceding October
From this reading “XXIII _Washington, Sept.”
the capital of the United States in the District of Columbia and a tourist mecca; George Washington commissioned Charles L'Enfant to lay out the city in 1791
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.
continue a certain state, condition, or activity
In this reading “Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
worthy of acceptance or satisfactory
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
(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 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I have written to Han and George and sent George papers.
any thing at all
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
United States general in the American Civil War who was defeated by Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Fredericksburg (1824-1881)
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
dearly loved
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
Christian martyr; patron saint of England; hero of the legend of Saint George and the Dragon in which he slew a dragon and saved a princess (?-303)
From this reading I have written to Han and George and sent George papers.
expect, believe, or suppose
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
imperial dynasty that ruled China (most of the time from 206 BC to AD 220) and expanded its boundaries and developed its bureaucracy; remembered as one of the great eras of Chinese civilization
From this reading I have written to Han and George and sent George papers.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I have written to Han and George and sent George papers.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
and nothing more
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
a state in east central United States; a border state during the American Civil War; famous for breeding race horses
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
immediately past
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
the literary culture
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
place of business where professional or clerical duties are performed
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
writing that provides information (especially information of an official nature)
From this reading I have written to Han and George and sent George papers.
affix in a public place or for public notice
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
hitting a golf ball that is on the green using a putter
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
formality and propriety of manner
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
precisely, exactly
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
100 senti equal 1 kroon in Estonia
From this reading I have written to Han and George and sent George papers.
the month following August and preceding October
From this reading XXIII _Washington, Sept.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I have written to Han and George and sent George papers.
precisely as stated
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading WALT.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
the capital of the United States in the District of Columbia and a tourist mecca; George Washington commissioned Charles L'Enfant to lay out the city in 1791
From this reading XXIII _Washington, Sept.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
used to introduce two or more possibilities
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
in the company of; together with
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
set down in writing in any of various ways
From this reading I have written to Han and George and sent George papers.
the cardinal number that is the sum of twenty-two and one
From this reading XXIII _Washington, Sept.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Mother, have you heard anything whether the 51st went on with Burnside, or did they remain as a reserve in Kentucky?
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading 15, 1863._ DEAR MOTHER--Your letters were very acceptable--one came just as I was putting my last in the post office--I guess they all come right.
Chapter 4 of The Wound Dresser by Walt Whitman 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 4 holds 401 sentences of The Wound Dresser, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Wound Dresser by Walt Whitman 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 4 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 Wound Dresser by Walt Whitman on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2411 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #35725 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #35725, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 200 minutes of reading across 483 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Wound Dresser section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of The Wound Dresser 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 Wound Dresser, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
