Chapter 12 of Under Sentence of Death is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of Under Sentence of Death is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE priest has come back to me. He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face. Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man. This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners. But his exhortations have no effect on me.
Chapter 12 of Under Sentence of Death is here in full — 118 sentences across 24 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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.
surrounded by; in the company of
From this reading “This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.”
intending or showing kindness
From this reading “He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.”
relating to or characterized by charity
From this reading “Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man.”
(usually plural) everything that is included in a collection and that is held or included in something
From this reading “This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.”
administer or bestow, as in small portions
From this reading “This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.”
plural of “exhortation” — a communication intended to urge or persuade the recipients to take some action
From this reading “But his exhortations have no effect on me.”
plural of “prisoner” — a person who is confined; especially a prisoner of war
From this reading “This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.”
a container used for carrying money and small personal items or accessories (especially by women)
From this reading “This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.”
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.
In this reading “He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.”
be restored
In this reading “THE priest has come back to me.”
In this reading “He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.”
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 has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.
surrounded by; in the company of
From this reading This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading THE priest has come back to me.
intending or showing kindness
From this reading He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But his exhortations have no effect on me.
relating to or characterized by charity
From this reading Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading THE priest has come back to me.
(usually plural) everything that is included in a collection and that is held or included in something
From this reading This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.
administer or bestow, as in small portions
From this reading This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.
a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon
From this reading But his exhortations have no effect on me.
plural of “exhortation” — a communication intended to urge or persuade the recipients to take some action
From this reading But his exhortations have no effect on me.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.
soft and mild; not harsh or stern or severe
From this reading He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man.
a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss
From this reading He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.
the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading THE priest has come back to me.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man.
in truth (often tends to intensify)
From this reading Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading THE priest has come back to me.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.
not any; not one
From this reading But his exhortations have no effect on me.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading But his exhortations have no effect on me.
a clergyman in Christian churches who has the authority to perform or administer various religious rites; one of the Holy Orders
From this reading THE priest has come back to me.
plural of “prisoner” — a person who is confined; especially a prisoner of war
From this reading This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.
a container used for carrying money and small personal items or accessories (especially by women)
From this reading This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man.
cut with a saw
From this reading This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Indeed, I have heard that he is a really good and charitable man.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE priest has come back to me.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading This morning I saw him distribute the contents of his purse amongst the prisoners.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading THE priest has come back to me.
a Caucasian
From this reading He has white hair, a gentle manner, and a benevolent face.
Chapter 12 of Under Sentence of Death by Victor Hugo holds 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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 12 holds 118 sentences of Under Sentence of Death, unabridged, divided into 24 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of Under Sentence of Death by Victor Hugo exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 118 sentences, grouped into 24 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 24 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 24 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 12 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 Under Sentence of Death by Victor Hugo on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4014 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #50010 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #50010, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 334 minutes of reading across 803 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Under Sentence of Death section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Under Sentence of Death 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 Under Sentence of Death, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
