Chapter 4 of Villa Elsa A Story of German Family Life is here in full — 85 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Villa Elsa A Story of German Family Life is here in full — 85 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of. It was exacting and the most important affair. Kirtley did not want to be discourteous or appear unappreciative. He had come to Germany to do as the superior Germans do. His digestive tract was on the narrow-gage American plan.
Chapter 4 of Villa Elsa A Story of German Family Life is here in full — 85 sentences across 17 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.
relating to or having the power to cause or promote digestion
From this reading “His digestive tract was on the narrow-gage American plan.”
having made preparations
From this reading “FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.”
the act of consuming liquids
From this reading “FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.”
the act of consuming food
From this reading “FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.”
having complicated nutritional requirements; especially growing only in special artificial cultures
From this reading “It was exacting and the most important affair.”
plural of “german” — a person of German nationality
From this reading “He had come to Germany to do as the superior Germans do.”
a republic in central Europe; split into East Germany and West Germany after World War II and reunited in 1990
From this reading “He had come to Germany to do as the superior Germans do.”
an extended area of land
From this reading “His digestive tract was on the narrow-gage American plan.”
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.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading It was exacting and the most important affair.
a native or inhabitant of the United States
From this reading His digestive tract was on the narrow-gage American plan.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Kirtley did not want to be discourteous or appear unappreciative.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading He had come to Germany to do as the superior Germans do.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading He had come to Germany to do as the superior Germans do.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Kirtley did not want to be discourteous or appear unappreciative.
relating to or having the power to cause or promote digestion
From this reading His digestive tract was on the narrow-gage American plan.
showing no courtesy; rude
From this reading Kirtley did not want to be discourteous or appear unappreciative.
having made preparations
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading He had come to Germany to do as the superior Germans do.
the act of consuming liquids
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
the act of consuming food
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
having complicated nutritional requirements; especially growing only in special artificial cultures
From this reading It was exacting and the most important affair.
a social unit living together
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
plural of “german” — a person of German nationality
From this reading He had come to Germany to do as the superior Germans do.
a republic in central Europe; split into East Germany and West Germany after World War II and reunited in 1990
From this reading He had come to Germany to do as the superior Germans do.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had come to Germany to do as the superior Germans do.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading His digestive tract was on the narrow-gage American plan.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
of great significance or value
From this reading It was exacting and the most important affair.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was exacting and the most important affair.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Kirtley did not want to be discourteous or appear unappreciative.
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
used to form the superlative
From this reading It was exacting and the most important affair.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading His digestive tract was on the narrow-gage American plan.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Kirtley did not want to be discourteous or appear unappreciative.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading His digestive tract was on the narrow-gage American plan.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Kirtley did not want to be discourteous or appear unappreciative.
have the will and intention to carry out some action
From this reading His digestive tract was on the narrow-gage American plan.
capable of happening or existing
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
of high or superior quality or performance
From this reading He had come to Germany to do as the superior Germans do.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading FAMILY LIFE The matter of much eating and drinking had first to be, if possible, disposed of.
an extended area of land
From this reading His digestive tract was on the narrow-gage American plan.
not feeling or expressing gratitude
From this reading Kirtley did not want to be discourteous or appear unappreciative.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading Kirtley did not want to be discourteous or appear unappreciative.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was exacting and the most important affair.
Chapter 4 of Villa Elsa A Story of German Family Life by Stuart Oliver Henry holds 85 sentences, grouped into 17 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 4 holds 85 sentences of Villa Elsa A Story of German Family Life, unabridged, divided into 17 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Villa Elsa A Story of German Family Life by Stuart Oliver Henry exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 85 sentences, grouped into 17 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 17 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 17 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 4 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 4084 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #19946 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #19946, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 340 minutes of reading across 817 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in Villa Elsa A Story of German Family Life, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
