Chapter 4 of Wayside Courtships is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Wayside Courtships is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender. I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman. She looked surprised and pleased. "Oh, you're a college man! I have two brothers at Yale.
Chapter 4 of Wayside Courtships is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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 “brother” — a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading “I have two brothers at Yale.”
the body of faculty and students of a college
From this reading “I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.”
indicating exactness or preciseness
From this reading “"Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.”
a healthy state of wellbeing free from disease
From this reading “"Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.”
uneducated in general; lacking knowledge or sophistication
From this reading “I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.”
taken unawares or suddenly and feeling wonder or astonishment
From this reading “She looked surprised and pleased.”
given to sympathy or gentleness or sentimentality
From this reading “"Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.”
a university in Connecticut
From this reading “I have two brothers at Yale.”
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 "Oh, you're a college man!
in spite of the fact that
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She looked surprised and pleased.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading I have two brothers at Yale.
plural of “brother” — a male with the same parents as someone else
From this reading I have two brothers at Yale.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
the body of faculty and students of a college
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
indicating exactness or preciseness
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
showing or causing joy and pleasure; especially made happy
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading I have two brothers at Yale.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
a healthy state of wellbeing free from disease
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
uneducated in general; lacking knowledge or sophistication
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
and nothing more
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
used to make a suggestion or a command including the speaker
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading She looked surprised and pleased.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading "Oh, you're a college man!
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
a midwestern state in north central United States in the Great Lakes region
From this reading "Oh, you're a college man!
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
experiencing or manifesting pleasure
From this reading She looked surprised and pleased.
pleasing by delicacy or grace; not imposing
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She looked surprised and pleased.
taken unawares or suddenly and feeling wonder or astonishment
From this reading She looked surprised and pleased.
given to sympathy or gentleness or sentimentality
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading I have two brothers at Yale.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
(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 "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
at the time that
From this reading "Well, I'm not out here for my health exactly, although when I came here I was pretty tender.
an employee who performs manual or industrial labor
From this reading I was just out of college, in fact," he said, glad of the chance to let her know that he was not an ignorant workingman.
a university in Connecticut
From this reading I have two brothers at Yale.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Oh, you're a college man!
Chapter 4 of Wayside Courtships by Hamlin Garland holds 405 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 4 holds 405 sentences of Wayside Courtships, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Wayside Courtships by Hamlin Garland exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 405 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 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 Wayside Courtships by Hamlin Garland on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5245 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #20247 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #20247, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 437 minutes of reading across 1049 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Wayside Courtships section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of Wayside Courtships 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 Wayside Courtships, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
