Chapter 9 of Visible and Invisible is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Visible and Invisible is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him. I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked. “It is coming,” he said. “I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice. There is nothing to be afraid of: I must remember that myself....”
Chapter 9 of Visible and Invisible is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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 seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading “As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.”
the trait of lacking courage
From this reading ““I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice.”
become wider
From this reading “I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked.”
(of materials or goods) brought to the desired final state
From this reading “As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.”
the opening through which food is taken in and vocalizations emerge
From this reading “I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked.”
plural of “pupil” — a learner who is enrolled in an educational institution
From this reading “I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked.”
the utterance of intelligible speech
From this reading “As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.”
past form of “work” — exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading “I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
In this reading “As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.”
at or in the front
In this reading “As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.”
rise to one's feet
In this reading “As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.”
In this reading “As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of 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.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading “I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice.
filled with fear or apprehension
From this reading There is nothing to be afraid of: I must remember that myself....”
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading “I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice.
a seat for one person, with a support for the back
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading “I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice.
the act of drawing spatially closer to something
From this reading “It is coming,” he said.
the trait of lacking courage
From this reading “I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice.
become wider
From this reading I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked.
(of materials or goods) brought to the desired final state
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
in a fixed manner
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
the side that is forward or prominent
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
acknowledged as a supposition
From this reading “I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “It is coming,” he said.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading “It is coming,” he said.
the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
the opening through which food is taken in and vocalizations emerge
From this reading I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked.
used to say something is necessary, or almost certainly true
From this reading There is nothing to be afraid of: I must remember that myself....”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice.
used when the speaker is also the object of the action
From this reading There is nothing to be afraid of: I must remember that myself....”
not one thing; not anything
From this reading There is nothing to be afraid of: I must remember that myself....”
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
plural of “pupil” — a learner who is enrolled in an educational institution
From this reading I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked.
with speed
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
To recall to mind.
From this reading There is nothing to be afraid of: I must remember that myself....”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “It is coming,” he said.
cut with a saw
From this reading I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked.
the utterance of intelligible speech
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
not in physical motion
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading There is nothing to be afraid of: I must remember that myself....”
in or at that place or location
From this reading There is nothing to be afraid of: I must remember that myself....”
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading “I am to be given a chance of atoning for my cowardice.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading As he finished speaking he got up quickly from his chair, still looking fixedly in front of him.
past form of “work” — exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading I saw his pupils dilate, and his mouth worked.
Chapter 9 of Visible and Invisible by E. F. (Edward Frederic) Benson holds 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 9 holds 403 sentences of Visible and Invisible, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Visible and Invisible by E. F. (Edward Frederic) Benson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 403 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 9 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 Visible and Invisible by E. F. (Edward Frederic) Benson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3584 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #60339 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #60339, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 298 minutes of reading across 717 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Visible and Invisible section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of Visible and Invisible 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 Visible and Invisible, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
