Chapter 1 of What She Could is here in full — 172 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of What She Could is here in full — 172 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Girls, there's a Band!" "A what?" "A Band--in the Sunday-School." "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker. "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
Chapter 1 of What She Could is here in full — 172 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/34 · 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 unofficial association of people or groups
From this reading “"Girls, there's a Band!"”
marked by lack of attention or consideration or forethought or thoroughness; not careful
From this reading “"I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.”
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading “"Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."”
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading “"Girls, there's a Band!"”
a dark region of considerable extent on the surface of the moon
From this reading “"Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."”
precipitation falling from clouds in the form of ice crystals
From this reading “"Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."”
someone who expresses in language; someone who talks (especially someone who delivers a public speech or someone especially garrulous)
From this reading “"I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.”
rub with a circular motion
From this reading “"Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."”
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.
take into consideration for exemplifying purposes
In this reading “"Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."”
place, fit, or thrust (something) into another thing
In this reading “"I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.”
In this reading “"I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.”
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 "Girls, there's a Band!"
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
one more of the same kind, or a different one
From this reading "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
an unofficial association of people or groups
From this reading "Girls, there's a Band!"
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
marked by lack of attention or consideration or forethought or thoroughness; not careful
From this reading "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
a young female
From this reading "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading "Girls, there's a Band!"
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "A Band--in the Sunday-School."
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.
perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
a dark region of considerable extent on the surface of the moon
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.
precipitation falling from clouds in the form of ice crystals
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
someone who expresses in language; someone who talks (especially someone who delivers a public speech or someone especially garrulous)
From this reading "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "A Band--in the Sunday-School."
having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured
From this reading "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "A Band--in the Sunday-School."
in or at that place or location
From this reading "I am sure there is a careless girl in the house," put in another speaker.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Girls, there's a Band!"
used to ask for information about something
From this reading "A what?"
rub with a circular motion
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Go and wipe your feet, Maria; look at the snow you have brought in."
Chapter 1 of What She Could by Susan Warner holds 172 sentences, grouped into 35 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 1 holds 172 sentences of What She Could, unabridged, divided into 35 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of What She Could by Susan Warner exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 172 sentences, grouped into 35 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 35 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 35 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 1 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 What She Could by Susan Warner on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4179 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30146 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #30146, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 348 minutes of reading across 836 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through What She Could section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of What She Could 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 What She Could, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
