Chapter 1 of Where the Blue Begins is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Where the Blue Begins is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken. “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two. I don't suppose that would do. Have you a clinical thermometer, Fuji?” Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.
Chapter 1 of Where the Blue Begins is here in full — 199 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 25/39 · 5 reading units · Lines 121–125
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.
relating to a clinic or conducted in or as if in a clinic and depending on direct observation of patients
From this reading “Have you a clinical thermometer, Fuji?””
a person or firm that employs workers
From this reading “Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.”
shrubby Japanese cherry tree having pale pink blossoms
From this reading “Have you a clinical thermometer, Fuji?””
worry unnecessarily or excessively
From this reading “Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.”
a heavy silvery toxic univalent and bivalent metallic element; the only metal that is liquid at ordinary temperatures
From this reading ““The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.”
separate into parts or portions
From this reading ““The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.”
plural of “temperature” — the degree of hotness or coldness of a body or environment (corresponding to its molecular activity)
From this reading “Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.”
measuring instrument for measuring temperature
From this reading ““The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.”
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 Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.
relating to a clinic or conducted in or as if in a clinic and depending on direct observation of patients
From this reading Have you a clinical thermometer, Fuji?”
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading I don't suppose that would do.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I don't suppose that would do.
a person or firm that employs workers
From this reading Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.
past form of “fear” — be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event
From this reading Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.
mat together and make felt-like
From this reading Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.
a rise in the temperature of the body; frequently a symptom of infection
From this reading Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.
shrubby Japanese cherry tree having pale pink blossoms
From this reading Have you a clinical thermometer, Fuji?”
worry unnecessarily or excessively
From this reading Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I don't suppose that would do.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
the act that results in something coming to be
From this reading Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.
a heavy silvery toxic univalent and bivalent metallic element; the only metal that is liquid at ordinary temperatures
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
and nothing more
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
above and across; more than
From this reading Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.
a structure attached to the exterior of a building often forming a covered entrance
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.
separate into parts or portions
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
express a supposition
From this reading I don't suppose that would do.
understood in a certain way; made sense of
From this reading Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.
plural of “temperature” — the degree of hotness or coldness of a body or environment (corresponding to its molecular activity)
From this reading Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading I don't suppose that would do.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.
measuring instrument for measuring temperature
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading Gissing feared a fever and thought their temperatures should be taken.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Fuji felt that his employer was making too much fuss over the matter.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
in the company of; together with
From this reading “The only thermometer we have,” he said, “is the one on the porch, with the mercury split in two.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading I don't suppose that would do.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Have you a clinical thermometer, Fuji?”
Chapter 1 of Where the Blue Begins by Christopher Morley holds 199 sentences, grouped into 40 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 199 sentences of Where the Blue Begins, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Where the Blue Begins by Christopher Morley exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 199 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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.
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Yes. All 2507 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1402 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1402, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 208 minutes of reading across 502 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Where the Blue Begins section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of Where the Blue Begins 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 Where the Blue Begins, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
