Chapter 27 of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVII
Chapter 27 of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him. The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte! Look at 'um! Must ha' had something in his life to sour 'um!” But Swithin had had nothing in his life to sour him.
Chapter 27 of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories is here in full — 201 sentences across 41 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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.
for the reason that
From this reading “Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.”
a team of professional baseball players who play and travel together
From this reading “The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!”
lacking or deprived of the sense of hearing wholly or in part
From this reading “Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.”
light informal conversation for social occasions
From this reading “The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!”
a man who is a native or inhabitant of Ireland
From this reading “The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!”
any new participant in some activity
From this reading “The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!”
go sour or spoil
From this reading “Must ha' had something in his life to sour 'um!””
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading “Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.”
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.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Look at 'um!
for the reason that
From this reading Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But Swithin had had nothing in his life to sour him.
a team of professional baseball players who play and travel together
From this reading The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!
lacking or deprived of the sense of hearing wholly or in part
From this reading Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!
light informal conversation for social occasions
From this reading The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!
(astronomy) the angular distance of a celestial point measured westward along the celestial equator from the zenith crossing; the right ascension for an observer at a particular location and time of day
From this reading Must ha' had something in his life to sour 'um!”
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Must ha' had something in his life to sour 'um!”
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Must ha' had something in his life to sour 'um!”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Must ha' had something in his life to sour 'um!”
a man who is a native or inhabitant of Ireland
From this reading The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!
a characteristic state or mode of living
From this reading Must ha' had something in his life to sour 'um!”
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading Look at 'um!
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading Must ha' had something in his life to sour 'um!”
any new participant in some activity
From this reading The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!
not any; not one
From this reading Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading But Swithin had had nothing in his life to sour him.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!
a thing, without saying which
From this reading Must ha' had something in his life to sour 'um!”
go sour or spoil
From this reading Must ha' had something in his life to sour 'um!”
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But Swithin had had nothing in his life to sour him.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The club gossip, an Irishman, said to each newcomer: “Old Forsyte!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Look at 'um!
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Because he was old and deaf, he spoke to no one; and no one spoke to him.
Chapter 27 of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories by John Galsworthy holds 201 sentences, grouped into 41 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 27 holds 201 sentences of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories, unabridged, divided into 41 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 27 of Villa Rubein, and Other Stories by John Galsworthy exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 201 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 27 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, a public-domain edition. 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.
