Chapter 18 of Under Western Eyes is here in full — 211 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of Under Western Eyes is here in full — 211 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“For Madame de S--. That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort. It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared. Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her. It was most astonishing.
Chapter 18 of Under Western Eyes is here in full — 211 sentences across 43 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/42 · 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.
surprising greatly
From this reading “It was most astonishing.”
past form of “complain” — express complaints, discontent, displeasure, or unhappiness
From this reading “It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.”
a prescribed selection of foods
From this reading “That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.”
oval reproductive body of a fowl (especially a hen) used as food
From this reading “It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.”
inflected form of “fly” — travel through the air; be airborne
From this reading “Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.”
third-person singular of “observe” — discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of
From this reading “That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.”
with honesty
From this reading “It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.”
unique or specific to a person or thing or category
From this reading “That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.”
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 That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.
surprising greatly
From this reading It was most astonishing.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
past form of “complain” — express complaints, discontent, displeasure, or unhappiness
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies
From this reading “For Madame de S--.
a prescribed selection of foods
From this reading That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.
oval reproductive body of a fowl (especially a hen) used as food
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
inflected form of “fly” — travel through the air; be airborne
From this reading Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “For Madame de S--.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
a polite name for any woman
From this reading That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.
title used for a married Frenchwoman
From this reading “For Madame de S--.
used to form the superlative
From this reading It was most astonishing.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
third-person singular of “observe” — discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of
From this reading That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.
disciple of Jesus and leader of the Apostles; regarded by Catholics as the vicar of Christ on earth and first Pope
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
deserving or inciting pity
From this reading Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.
made ready or fit or suitable beforehand
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
past form of “remember” — recall knowledge from memory; have a recollection
From this reading Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.
with honesty
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading “For Madame de S--.
third-person singular of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.
a category of things distinguished by some common characteristic or quality
From this reading That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.
unique or specific to a person or thing or category
From this reading That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading That lady observes a special diet, or something of the sort.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was most astonishing.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading It seems she complained the day before to Peter Ivanovitch that the eggs were not rightly prepared.
an adult female person (as opposed to a man)
From this reading Peter Ivanovitch suddenly remembered this against the poor woman, and flew out at her.
Chapter 18 of Under Western Eyes by Joseph Conrad holds 211 sentences, grouped into 43 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 18 holds 211 sentences of Under Western Eyes, unabridged, divided into 43 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of Under Western Eyes by Joseph Conrad exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 211 sentences, grouped into 43 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 43 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 43 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 18 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 Western Eyes by Joseph Conrad on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 8310 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2480 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2480, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1662 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Under Western Eyes section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Under Western Eyes 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 Western Eyes, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
