Chapter 1 of Uncle Tom's Cabin, Young Folks' Edition is here in full — 89 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Uncle Tom's Cabin, Young Folks' Edition is here in full — 89 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done. He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her. He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed. Mrs. Shelby could hardly believe it. 'Oh, you do not mean this,' she said.
Chapter 1 of Uncle Tom's Cabin, Young Folks' Edition is here in full — 89 sentences across 18 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/17 · 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.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading “He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed.”
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading “Mrs. Shelby could hardly believe it.”
only a very short time before
From this reading “Mrs. Shelby could hardly believe it.”
annoy continually or chronically
From this reading “ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.”
used to add a contrasting statement
From this reading “He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed.”
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading “'Oh, you do not mean this,' she said.”
plural of “run” — a score in baseball made by a runner touching all four bases safely
From this reading “ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.”
experiencing or marked by or causing sadness or sorrow or discontent
From this reading “ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.”
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 to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
for the reason that
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
From this reading He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed.
accept as true; take to be true
From this reading Mrs. Shelby could hardly believe it.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading Mrs. Shelby could hardly believe it.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed.
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
only a very short time before
From this reading Mrs. Shelby could hardly believe it.
annoy continually or chronically
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
used to add a contrasting statement
From this reading He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed.
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 He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading 'Oh, you do not mean this,' she said.
a form of address for a man
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading Mrs. Shelby could hardly believe it.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading 'Oh, you do not mean this,' she said.
plural of “run” — a score in baseball made by a runner touching all four bases safely
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading 'Oh, you do not mean this,' she said.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
express in words
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading 'Oh, you do not mean this,' she said.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
experiencing or marked by or causing sadness or sorrow or discontent
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
precisely as stated
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading He had to do it that night, however, before she went to bed.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
in the company of; together with
From this reading ELIZA RUNS AWAY WITH LITTLE HARRY Mr. Shelby was very unhappy because of what he had done.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading He knew his wife would be very unhappy too, and he did not know how to tell her.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading 'Oh, you do not mean this,' she said.
Chapter 1 of Uncle Tom's Cabin, Young Folks' Edition by Harriet Beecher Stowe holds 89 sentences, grouped into 18 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 89 sentences of Uncle Tom's Cabin, Young Folks' Edition, unabridged, divided into 18 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Uncle Tom's Cabin, Young Folks' Edition by Harriet Beecher Stowe exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 89 sentences, grouped into 18 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 18 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 18 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 Uncle Tom's Cabin, Young Folks' Edition by Harriet Beecher Stowe on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1291 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #11171 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #11171, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 107 minutes of reading across 259 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Uncle Tom's Cabin, Young Folks' Edition section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 18 chapters of Uncle Tom's Cabin, Young Folks' Edition 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 Uncle Tom's Cabin, Young Folks' Edition, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
