Chapter 8 of When the King Loses His Head, and Other Stories is here in full — 128 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of When the King Loses His Head, and Other Stories is here in full — 128 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown. They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold. It was funny, and curious and a little uncanny. Had not someone substituted a pretender in his place? “It is I, the King,” says the Twentieth.
Chapter 8 of When the King Loses His Head, and Other Stories is here in full — 128 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/25 · 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.
(according to Marxist thought) being of the property-owning class and exploitive of the working class
From this reading “They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold.”
a rude or vulgar fool
From this reading “They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.”
a creature of Teutonic mythology; usually represented as breathing fire and having a reptilian body and sometimes wings
From this reading “They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold.”
-ing form of “expect” — regard something as probable or likely
From this reading “They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.”
a claimant to the throne or to the office of ruler (usually without just title)
From this reading “Had not someone substituted a pretender in his place?”
past form of “substitute” — put in the place of another; switch seemingly equivalent items
From this reading “Had not someone substituted a pretender in his place?”
position 20 in a countable series of things
From this reading ““It is I, the King,” says the Twentieth.”
suggesting the operation of supernatural influences
From this reading “It was funny, and curious and a little uncanny.”
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 “They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.”
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 They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold.
past form of “appear” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
having undesirable or negative qualities
From this reading They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold.
(according to Marxist thought) being of the property-owning class and exploitive of the working class
From this reading They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold.
a rude or vulgar fool
From this reading They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
having a low or inadequate temperature or feeling a sensation of coldness or having been made cold by e.g. ice or refrigeration
From this reading They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold.
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading It was funny, and curious and a little uncanny.
a creature of Teutonic mythology; usually represented as breathing fire and having a reptilian body and sometimes wings
From this reading They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold.
-ing form of “expect” — regard something as probable or likely
From this reading They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
arousing or provoking laughter
From this reading It was funny, and curious and a little uncanny.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
a square piece of cloth used for wiping the eyes or nose or as a costume accessory
From this reading They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Had not someone substituted a pretender in his place?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “It is I, the King,” says the Twentieth.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Had not someone substituted a pretender in his place?
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “It is I, the King,” says the Twentieth.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was funny, and curious and a little uncanny.
a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading It was funny, and curious and a little uncanny.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Had not someone substituted a pretender in his place?
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading Had not someone substituted a pretender in his place?
a claimant to the throne or to the office of ruler (usually without just title)
From this reading Had not someone substituted a pretender in his place?
plural of “say” — the chance to speak
From this reading “It is I, the King,” says the Twentieth.
a person, without saying who
From this reading Had not someone substituted a pretender in his place?
past form of “substitute” — put in the place of another; switch seemingly equivalent items
From this reading Had not someone substituted a pretender in his place?
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “It is I, the King,” says the Twentieth.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
in or at that place or location
From this reading They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They had been expecting a King, but there appeared before them a clown.
position 20 in a countable series of things
From this reading “It is I, the King,” says the Twentieth.
suggesting the operation of supernatural influences
From this reading It was funny, and curious and a little uncanny.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was funny, and curious and a little uncanny.
in the company of; together with
From this reading They had been expecting a dragon, but there came a big-nosed bourgeois with a handkerchief and a bad cold.
Chapter 8 of When the King Loses His Head, and Other Stories by Leonid Andreyev holds 128 sentences, grouped into 26 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 8 holds 128 sentences of When the King Loses His Head, and Other Stories, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of When the King Loses His Head, and Other Stories by Leonid Andreyev exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 128 sentences, grouped into 26 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 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 26 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 8 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 When the King Loses His Head, and Other Stories by Leonid Andreyev on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4852 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #49595 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #49595, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 404 minutes of reading across 971 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through When the King Loses His Head, and Other Stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 24 chapters of When the King Loses His Head, and Other Stories 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 When the King Loses His Head, and Other Stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
