Chapter 40 of Villette is here in full — 83 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XL
Chapter 40 of Villette is here in full — 83 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
FINIS. Man cannot prophesy. Love is no oracle. Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing. Those years of absence!
Chapter 40 of Villette is here in full — 83 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/16 · 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.
the state of being absent
From this reading “Those years of absence!”
be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event
From this reading “Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing.”
plural of “imago” — (psychoanalysis) an idealized image of someone (usually a parent) formed in childhood
From this reading “Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing.”
an authoritative person who divines the future
From this reading “Love is no oracle.”
on certain occasions or in certain cases but not always
From this reading “Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing.”
a special situation
From this reading “Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing.”
characteristic of false pride; having an exaggerated sense of self-importance
From this reading “Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing.”
a late time of life
From this reading “Those years of absence!”
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 Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing.
the state of being absent
From this reading Those years of absence!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Man cannot prophesy.
be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event
From this reading Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing.
the temporal end; the concluding time
From this reading FINIS.
plural of “imago” — (psychoanalysis) an idealized image of someone (usually a parent) formed in childhood
From this reading Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Love is no oracle.
a strong positive emotion of regard and affection
From this reading Love is no oracle.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading Man cannot prophesy.
not any; not one
From this reading Love is no oracle.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Those years of absence!
an authoritative person who divines the future
From this reading Love is no oracle.
predict or reveal through, or as if through, divine inspiration
From this reading Man cannot prophesy.
on certain occasions or in certain cases but not always
From this reading Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing.
a special situation
From this reading Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading Those years of absence!
characteristic of false pride; having an exaggerated sense of self-importance
From this reading Fear sometimes imagines a vain thing.
a late time of life
From this reading Those years of absence!
Chapter 40 of Villette by Charlotte Brontë holds 83 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 40 holds 83 sentences of Villette, unabridged, divided into 17 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 40 of Villette by Charlotte Brontë exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 83 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 40 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.
