Chapter 4 of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories is here in full — 205 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories is here in full — 205 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“Soup-turtle, fat, green fat!” He smacked his lips. No servants were allowed, because, as Greta said to Harz: “It is that we are to be glad this evening.” Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
Chapter 4 of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories is here in full — 205 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/41 · 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 round vessel that is open at the top; used chiefly for holding food or liquids
From this reading “Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.”
having an (over)abundance of flesh
From this reading ““Soup-turtle, fat, green fat!””
a disposition to be friendly and approachable (easy to talk to)
From this reading “Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.”
a German man; used before the name as a title equivalent to Mr in English
From this reading “Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.”
unhurried and relaxed
From this reading “Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.”
possessive form of “paul” — United States feminist (1885-1977)
From this reading “Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.”
past form of “radiate” — send out rays or waves
From this reading “Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.”
past form of “smack” — deliver a hard blow to
From this reading “He smacked his lips.”
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 Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
past form of “allow” — make it possible through a specific action or lack of action for something to happen
From this reading No servants were allowed, because, as Greta said to Harz:
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “It is that we are to be glad this evening.”
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading No servants were allowed, because, as Greta said to Harz:
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “It is that we are to be glad this evening.”
for the reason that
From this reading No servants were allowed, because, as Greta said to Harz:
a round vessel that is open at the top; used chiefly for holding food or liquids
From this reading Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
the appearance conveyed by a person's face
From this reading Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading “It is that we are to be glad this evening.”
having an (over)abundance of flesh
From this reading “Soup-turtle, fat, green fat!”
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
a disposition to be friendly and approachable (easy to talk to)
From this reading Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
showing or causing joy and pleasure; especially made happy
From this reading “It is that we are to be glad this evening.”
green color or pigment; resembling the color of growing grass
From this reading “Soup-turtle, fat, green fat!”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading No servants were allowed, because, as Greta said to Harz:
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading No servants were allowed, because, as Greta said to Harz:
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He smacked his lips.
a German man; used before the name as a title equivalent to Mr in English
From this reading Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He smacked his lips.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “It is that we are to be glad this evening.”
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “It is that we are to be glad this evening.”
plural of “lip” — either of two fleshy folds of tissue that surround the mouth and play a role in speaking
From this reading He smacked his lips.
unhurried and relaxed
From this reading Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
not any; not one
From this reading No servants were allowed, because, as Greta said to Harz:
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
possessive form of “paul” — United States feminist (1885-1977)
From this reading Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
past form of “radiate” — send out rays or waves
From this reading Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading No servants were allowed, because, as Greta said to Harz:
plural of “servant” — a person working in the service of another (especially in the household)
From this reading No servants were allowed, because, as Greta said to Harz:
past form of “smack” — deliver a hard blow to
From this reading He smacked his lips.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Soup-turtle, fat, green fat!”
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading “It is that we are to be glad this evening.”
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “It is that we are to be glad this evening.”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading No servants were allowed, because, as Greta said to Harz:
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “It is that we are to be glad this evening.”
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading No servants were allowed, because, as Greta said to Harz:
fermented juice (of grapes especially)
From this reading Geniality radiated from Herr Paul's countenance, mellow as a bowl of wine.
Chapter 4 of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories by John Galsworthy holds 205 sentences, grouped into 41 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 205 sentences of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories by John Galsworthy exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 205 sentences, grouped into 41 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 41 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 41 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.
Common questions about reading Villa Rubein, and Other Stories by John Galsworthy on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7123 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2639 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #2639, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 593 minutes of reading across 1425 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Villa Rubein, and Other Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories 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 Villa Rubein, and Other Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
