Chapter 4 of White Fire is here in full — 58 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of White Fire is here in full — 58 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A SHAMELESS THING! The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through. The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary. She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went. She went at once to her own room.
Chapter 4 of White Fire is here in full — 58 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/11 · 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.
plural of “appearance” — outward or visible aspect of a person or thing
From this reading “She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.”
suitable to or characteristic of drama
From this reading “The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.”
constituting the undiminished entirety; lacking nothing essential especially not damaged
From this reading “She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.”
relating to physical reality rather than with thoughts or the mind
From this reading “She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.”
possessive form of “queen” — the only fertile female in a colony of social insects such as bees and ants and termites; its function is to lay eggs
From this reading “The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.”
A place of safety, refuge, or holy retreat within the academy.
From this reading “The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.”
feeling no shame
From this reading “A SHAMELESS THING!”
characterized by violent emotions or behavior
From this reading “The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.”
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 “She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.”
make a passage or journey from one place to another
In this reading “The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.”
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
In this reading “She went at once to her own room.”
In this reading “She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.”
In this reading “She went at once to her own room.”
In this reading “She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.”
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 A SHAMELESS THING!
(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 She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
plural of “appearance” — outward or visible aspect of a person or thing
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
suitable to or characteristic of drama
From this reading The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.
plural of “event” — something that happens at a given place and time
From this reading The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.
at any time
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
to a considerable degree; very much
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
past form of “follow” — to travel behind, go after, come after
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.
not accessible to view
From this reading The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
constituting the undiminished entirety; lacking nothing essential especially not damaged
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.
a coarse durable twill-weave cotton fabric
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
a formally arranged gathering
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
used to form the superlative
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.
on one occasion
From this reading She went at once to her own room.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.
relating to physical reality rather than with thoughts or the mind
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading She went at once to her own room.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
possessive form of “queen” — the only fertile female in a colony of social insects such as bees and ants and termites; its function is to lay eggs
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading She went at once to her own room.
A place of safety, refuge, or holy retreat within the academy.
From this reading The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.
disturbed psychologically as if by a physical jolt or shock
From this reading The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.
feeling no shame
From this reading A SHAMELESS THING!
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
the immaterial part of a person; the actuating cause of an individual life
From this reading The dramatic events of the meeting had shaken her hidden soul out of its sanctuary.
characterized by violent emotions or behavior
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
feeling or showing gratitude
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
a special situation
From this reading A SHAMELESS THING!
from one end or side of something to the other
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading The night that followed that meeting at Queen's Hall was the most tempestuous time Jean Arnot ever passed through.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading She was thankful to get home intact--so far, at all events, as outward appearances went.
Chapter 4 of White Fire by John Oxenham holds 58 sentences, grouped into 12 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 4 holds 58 sentences of White Fire, unabridged, divided into 12 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of White Fire by John Oxenham exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 58 sentences, grouped into 12 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 12 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 12 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 4 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 White Fire by John Oxenham on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4962 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #38061 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #38061, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 413 minutes of reading across 993 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through White Fire section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of White Fire 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 White Fire, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
