Chapter 29 of What Is Man? and Other Essays is here in full — 187 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIX
Chapter 29 of What Is Man? and Other Essays is here in full — 187 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
In the course of time we exhausted the facts. There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card. I was disappointed. I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials. I said as much, with the tears running down.
Chapter 29 of What Is Man? and Other Essays is here in full — 187 sentences across 38 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/37 · 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.
an account of the series of events making up a person's life
From this reading “I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.”
disappointingly unsuccessful
From this reading “I was disappointed.”
drained of energy or effectiveness; extremely tired; completely exhausted
From this reading “In the course of time we exhausted the facts.”
plural of “fact” — a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred
From this reading “In the course of time we exhausted the facts.”
past form of “grieve” — feel grief
From this reading “I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.”
plural of “material” — the tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a physical object
From this reading “I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.”
-ing form of “meditate” — reflect deeply on a subject
From this reading “I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.”
(of fluids) moving or issuing in a stream
From this reading “I said as much, with the tears running down.”
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 There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading I said as much, with the tears running down.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.
an account of the series of events making up a person's life
From this reading I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading In the course of time we exhausted the facts.
disappointingly unsuccessful
From this reading I was disappointed.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
drained of energy or effectiveness; extremely tired; completely exhausted
From this reading In the course of time we exhausted the facts.
plural of “fact” — a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred
From this reading In the course of time we exhausted the facts.
come upon, as if by accident; meet with
From this reading I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.
the cardinal number that is the sum of four and one
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
past form of “grieve” — feel grief
From this reading I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I was disappointed.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading In the course of time we exhausted the facts.
plural of “material” — the tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a physical object
From this reading I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.
-ing form of “meditate” — reflect deeply on a subject
From this reading I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading I said as much, with the tears running down.
not any; not one
From this reading I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading In the course of time we exhausted the facts.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
and nothing more
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
(of fluids) moving or issuing in a stream
From this reading I said as much, with the tears running down.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading I said as much, with the tears running down.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
the cardinal number that is the sum of five and one
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds)
From this reading I said as much, with the tears running down.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading In the course of time we exhausted the facts.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading In the course of time we exhausted the facts.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I had been meditating a biography, and was grieved to find that there were no materials.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I was disappointed.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading In the course of time we exhausted the facts.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
in the company of; together with
From this reading I said as much, with the tears running down.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading There were only five or six of them; you could set them all down on a visiting-card.
Chapter 29 of What Is Man? and Other Essays by Mark Twain holds 187 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 29 holds 187 sentences of What Is Man? and Other Essays, unabridged, divided into 38 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 29 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 187 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.
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About 432 minutes of reading across 1038 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in What Is Man? and Other Essays, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
