Chapter 25 of What Is Man? and Other Essays is here in full — 190 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXV
Chapter 25 of What Is Man? and Other Essays is here in full — 190 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Julius Caesar was really a very great man. He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin. Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup. The only form of government in Greece was a limited monkey. The Persian war lasted about 500 years.
Chapter 25 of What Is Man? and Other Essays is here in full — 190 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/38 · 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.
of southern Europe; similar to but smaller than the adder
From this reading “Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.”
plural of “beginner” — someone new to a field or activity
From this reading “He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin.”
beautiful and charismatic queen of Egypt; mistress of Julius Caesar and later of Mark Antony; killed herself to avoid capture by Octavian (69-30 BC)
From this reading “Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.”
(of solid matter) reduced to a liquid form
From this reading “Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.”
a republic in southeastern Europe on the southern part of the Balkan peninsula; known for grapes and olives and olive oil
From this reading “The only form of government in Greece was a limited monkey.”
small in range or scope
From this reading “The only form of government in Greece was a limited monkey.”
any of various long-tailed primates (excluding the prosimians)
From this reading “The only form of government in Greece was a limited monkey.”
a native or inhabitant of Iran
From this reading “The Persian war lasted about 500 years.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The Persian war lasted about 500 years.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Julius Caesar was really a very great man.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading The Persian war lasted about 500 years.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin.
of southern Europe; similar to but smaller than the adder
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
plural of “beginner” — someone new to a field or activity
From this reading He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin.
a written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)
From this reading He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
conqueror of Gaul and master of Italy (100-44 BC)
From this reading Julius Caesar was really a very great man.
past form of “cause” — give rise to; cause to happen or occur, not always intentionally
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
beautiful and charismatic queen of Egypt; mistress of Julius Caesar and later of Mark Antony; killed herself to avoid capture by Octavian (69-30 BC)
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
a small open container usually used for drinking; usually has a handle
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
(of solid matter) reduced to a liquid form
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin.
the phonological or orthographic sound or appearance of a word that can be used to describe or identify something
From this reading The only form of government in Greece was a limited monkey.
the organization that is the governing authority of a political unit
From this reading The only form of government in Greece was a limited monkey.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading Julius Caesar was really a very great man.
a republic in southeastern Europe on the southern part of the Balkan peninsula; known for grapes and olives and olive oil
From this reading The only form of government in Greece was a limited monkey.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Julius Caesar was really a very great man.
past form of “last” — persist for a specified period of time
From this reading The Persian war lasted about 500 years.
of or relating to the ancient Latins or the Latin language
From this reading He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin.
small in range or scope
From this reading The only form of government in Greece was a limited monkey.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading Julius Caesar was really a very great man.
any of various long-tailed primates (excluding the prosimians)
From this reading The only form of government in Greece was a limited monkey.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
and nothing more
From this reading The only form of government in Greece was a limited monkey.
a native or inhabitant of Iran
From this reading The Persian war lasted about 500 years.
in accordance with truth or fact or reality
From this reading Julius Caesar was really a very great man.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
an enlisted man or woman who serves in an army
From this reading He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin.
precisely as stated
From this reading Julius Caesar was really a very great man.
the waging of armed conflict against an enemy
From this reading The Persian war lasted about 500 years.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Julius Caesar was really a very great man.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
fermented juice (of grapes especially)
From this reading Cleopatra was caused by the death of an asp which she dissolved in a wine cup.
inflected form of “write” — produce a literary work
From this reading He was a very great soldier and wrote a book for beginners in the Latin.
a late time of life
From this reading The Persian war lasted about 500 years.
Chapter 25 of What Is Man? and Other Essays by Mark Twain holds 190 sentences, grouped into 38 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 25 holds 190 sentences of What Is Man? and Other Essays, unabridged, divided into 38 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 25 of What Is Man? and Other Essays by Mark Twain exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 190 sentences, grouped into 38 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 38 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 38 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 25 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.
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About 432 minutes of reading across 1038 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through What Is Man? and Other Essays section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in What Is Man? and Other Essays, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
