Chapter 3 of Venice Preserved: A Tragedy is here in full — 322 sentences across 65 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter III
Chapter 3 of Venice Preserved: A Tragedy is here in full — 322 sentences across 65 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_Jaf._ Hold, one moment. _Pier._ Who's he disputes the judgment of the senate? Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not! I must be heard; I must have leave to speak. Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
Chapter 3 of Venice Preserved: A Tragedy is here in full — 322 sentences across 65 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/64 · 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 short knife with a pointed and edged blade, used as a stealth weapon.
From this reading “Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?”
plural of “dispute” — a disagreement or argument about something important
From this reading “_Pier._ Who's he disputes the judgment of the senate?”
comparative of “noble” — impressive in appearance
From this reading “Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?”
a platform built out from the shore into the water and supported by piles; provides access to ships and boats
excessively forward
From this reading “Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!”
“Johnny” was applied as a nickname for Confederate soldiers by the Federal soldiers in the American Civil War; “greyback” derived from their grey Confederate uniforms
From this reading “Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!”
assembly possessing high legislative powers
From this reading “_Pier._ Who's he disputes the judgment of the senate?”
morally reprehensible
From this reading “Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?”
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.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading I must be heard; I must have leave to speak.
exhale hard
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!
A short knife with a pointed and edged blade, used as a stealth weapon.
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
plural of “dispute” — a disagreement or argument about something important
From this reading _Pier._ Who's he disputes the judgment of the senate?
having finished or arrived at completion
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
an old form of “have”, used with “thou”
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I must be heard; I must have leave to speak.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading _Pier._ Who's he disputes the judgment of the senate?
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading I must be heard; I must have leave to speak.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading _Jaf._ Hold, one moment.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I must be heard; I must have leave to speak.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Jaf._ Hold, one moment.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!
an opinion formed by judging something
From this reading _Pier._ Who's he disputes the judgment of the senate?
the quality of being just or fair
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
go away from a place
From this reading I must be heard; I must have leave to speak.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
a particular point in time
From this reading _Jaf._ Hold, one moment.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading I must be heard; I must have leave to speak.
comparative of “noble” — impressive in appearance
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading _Pier._ Who's he disputes the judgment of the senate?
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading _Jaf._ Hold, one moment.
a platform built out from the shore into the water and supported by piles; provides access to ships and boats
From this reading _Pier._ Who's he disputes the judgment of the senate?
capital of the state of South Dakota; located in central South Dakota on the Missouri river
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
excessively forward
From this reading Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!
“Johnny” was applied as a nickname for Confederate soldiers by the Federal soldiers in the American Civil War; “greyback” derived from their grey Confederate uniforms
From this reading Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!
assembly possessing high legislative powers
From this reading _Pier._ Who's he disputes the judgment of the senate?
express in speech
From this reading I must be heard; I must have leave to speak.
move an implement through
From this reading Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!
plural of “strike” — a group's refusal to work in protest against low pay or bad work conditions
From this reading Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _Pier._ Who's he disputes the judgment of the senate?
an old word for “you”, as the object, speaking to one person
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
an old word for “you”, as the subject, speaking to one person
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I must be heard; I must have leave to speak.
morally reprehensible
From this reading Thou hast disgrac'd me, Pierre, by a vile blow: Had not a dagger done thee nobler justice?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _Pier._ Who's he disputes the judgment of the senate?
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Presumptuous rebel--on-- [_strikes Jaffier._ _Jaf._ By heav'n, you stir not!
Chapter 3 of Venice Preserved: A Tragedy by Thomas Otway holds 322 sentences, grouped into 65 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 3 holds 322 sentences of Venice Preserved: A Tragedy, unabridged, divided into 65 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 3 of Venice Preserved: A Tragedy by Thomas Otway exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 322 sentences, grouped into 65 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 65 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 65 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 3 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.
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Yes. All 1011 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30934 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30934, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 84 minutes of reading across 203 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Venice Preserved: A Tragedy section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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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 Venice Preserved: A Tragedy, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
