Chapter 1 of Two Maiden Aunts is here in full — 173 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Two Maiden Aunts is here in full — 173 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC. THE MAVIS AND THE MERLIN. Price 2s. MY GOD-DAUGHTER. Price 2s.
Chapter 1 of Two Maiden Aunts is here in full — 173 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/34 · 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.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading “AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.”
stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading “AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.”
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading “AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.”
common Old World thrush noted for its song
From this reading “THE MAVIS AND THE MERLIN.”
(Arthurian legend) the magician who acted as King Arthur's advisor
From this reading “THE MAVIS AND THE MERLIN.”
an adulterous woman; a woman who has an ongoing extramarital sexual relationship with a man
From this reading “AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.”
the property of having material worth (often indicated by the amount of money something would bring if sold)
From this reading “Price 2s.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Price 2s.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading THE MAVIS AND THE MERLIN.
writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)
From this reading AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.
stick of wax with a wick in the middle
From this reading AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading MY GOD-DAUGHTER.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.
common Old World thrush noted for its song
From this reading THE MAVIS AND THE MERLIN.
(Arthurian legend) the magician who acted as King Arthur's advisor
From this reading THE MAVIS AND THE MERLIN.
an adulterous woman; a woman who has an ongoing extramarital sexual relationship with a man
From this reading AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading MY GOD-DAUGHTER.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AUTHOR OF 'MISTRESS PHIL' 'A LITTLE CANDLE ETC.
the property of having material worth (often indicated by the amount of money something would bring if sold)
From this reading Price 2s.
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading Price 2s.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE MAVIS AND THE MERLIN.
Chapter 1 of Two Maiden Aunts by Mary H. (Mary Harriette) Debenham holds 173 sentences, grouped into 35 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 1 holds 173 sentences of Two Maiden Aunts, unabridged, divided into 35 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Two Maiden Aunts by Mary H. (Mary Harriette) Debenham exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 173 sentences, grouped into 35 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 35 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 35 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 1 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 Two Maiden Aunts by Mary H. (Mary Harriette) Debenham on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1996 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30498 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30498, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 166 minutes of reading across 400 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Two Maiden Aunts section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of Two Maiden Aunts 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 Two Maiden Aunts, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
