Chapter 8 of Will Shakespeare: An Invention in Four Acts is here in full — 426 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Will Shakespeare: An Invention in Four Acts is here in full — 426 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
HENSLOWE. Ill enough, I think! SHAKESPEARE. Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down! I am not born to it.
Chapter 8 of Will Shakespeare: An Invention in Four Acts is here in full — 426 sentences across 86 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/85 · 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.
propose a payment
From this reading “Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!”
pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
From this reading “Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!”
English poet and playwright who introduced blank verse as a form of dramatic expression; was stabbed to death in a tavern brawl (1564-1593)
From this reading “Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!”
plural of “nettle” — any of numerous plants having stinging hairs that cause skin irritation on contact (especially of the genus Urtica or family Urticaceae)
From this reading “Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!”
plural of “play” — a dramatic work intended for performance by actors on a stage
From this reading “Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!”
water falling in drops from vapor condensed in the atmosphere
From this reading “Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!”
English poet and dramatist considered one of the greatest English writers (1564-1616)
From this reading “SHAKESPEARE.”
third-person singular of “write” — produce a literary work
From this reading “Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!”
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.
move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way
In this reading “Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!”
In this reading “Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes 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.
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading I am not born to it.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
propose a payment
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
brought into existence
From this reading I am not born to it.
plural of “come” — the thick white fluid containing spermatozoa that is ejaculated by the male genital tract
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading Ill enough, I think!
pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading HENSLOWE.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Ill enough, I think!
affected by an impairment of normal physical or mental function
From this reading Ill enough, I think!
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading I am not born to it.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
English poet and playwright who introduced blank verse as a form of dramatic expression; was stabbed to death in a tavern brawl (1564-1593)
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
plural of “nettle” — any of numerous plants having stinging hairs that cause skin irritation on contact (especially of the genus Urtica or family Urticaceae)
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading I am not born to it.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
have ownership or possession of
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
plural of “play” — a dramatic work intended for performance by actors on a stage
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
water falling in drops from vapor condensed in the atmosphere
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
English poet and dramatist considered one of the greatest English writers (1564-1616)
From this reading SHAKESPEARE.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading Ill enough, I think!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I am not born to it.
produce a literary work
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
third-person singular of “write” — produce a literary work
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading Write your own plays--bid Marlowe, any man That writes as nettles grow or rain comes down!
Chapter 8 of Will Shakespeare: An Invention in Four Acts by Clemence Dane holds 426 sentences, grouped into 86 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 426 sentences of Will Shakespeare: An Invention in Four Acts, unabridged, divided into 86 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Will Shakespeare: An Invention in Four Acts by Clemence Dane exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 426 sentences, grouped into 86 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 86 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 86 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.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in Will Shakespeare: An Invention in Four Acts, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
