Chapter 8 of Villette is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Villette is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
ISIDORE. My time was now well and profitably filled up. What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment. It was pleasant. I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
Chapter 8 of Villette is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 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.
plural of “faculty” — one of the inherent cognitive or perceptual powers of the mind
From this reading “I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.”
form in clay, wax, etc
From this reading “I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.”
the work of making something smooth and shiny by rubbing or waxing it
From this reading “I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.”
in a productive way
From this reading “My time was now well and profitably filled up.”
become destroyed by water, air, or a corrosive such as an acid
From this reading “I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.”
not circulating or flowing
From this reading “I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.”
reading carefully with intent to remember
From this reading “What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.”
the profession of a teacher
From this reading “What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.”
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 What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading My time was now well and profitably filled up.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
in a close relation or position in time or space
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
unvarying in nature
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
the boundary of a surface
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
plural of “faculty” — one of the inherent cognitive or perceptual powers of the mind
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
(usually followed by “with” or used as a combining form) generously supplied with
From this reading My time was now well and profitably filled up.
the act of acquiring something
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
only a very short time before
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ISIDORE.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was pleasant.
having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
the deliberate act of deviating from the truth
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
a particular point in time
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
form in clay, wax, etc
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading My time was now well and profitably filled up.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading My time was now well and profitably filled up.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
affording pleasure; being in harmony with your taste or likings
From this reading It was pleasant.
the work of making something smooth and shiny by rubbing or waxing it
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
a person who is the aim of an attack (especially a victim of ridicule or exploitation) by some hostile person or influence
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
in a productive way
From this reading My time was now well and profitably filled up.
become destroyed by water, air, or a corrosive such as an acid
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
refrain from harming
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
not circulating or flowing
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
reading carefully with intent to remember
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
the profession of a teacher
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading My time was now well and profitably filled up.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading My time was now well and profitably filled up.
the act of using
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading My time was now well and profitably filled up.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading My time was now well and profitably filled up.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I felt I was getting on; not lying the stagnant prey of mould and rust, but polishing my faculties and whetting them to a keen edge with constant use.
in the company of; together with
From this reading What with teaching others and studying closely myself, I had hardly a spare moment.
Chapter 8 of Villette by Charlotte Brontë holds 200 sentences, grouped into 40 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 8 holds 200 sentences of Villette, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Villette by Charlotte Brontë exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 200 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 8 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 Villette by Charlotte Brontë on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9433 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #9182 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #9182, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1887 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Villette section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Villette 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 Villette, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
