Chapter 4 of Willing to Die: A Novel is here in full — 255 sentences across 51 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Willing to Die: A Novel is here in full — 255 sentences across 51 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE LITTLE BLACK BOOK. Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped. I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person. I daresay I even blushed; I certainly was embarrassed. He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"
Chapter 4 of Willing to Die: A Novel is here in full — 255 sentences across 51 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/51 · 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.
past form of “blush” — turn red, as if in embarrassment or shame
From this reading “I daresay I even blushed; I certainly was embarrassed.”
changeable
From this reading “I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.”
perceived or discerned
From this reading “I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.”
feeling or caused to feel ill at ease or self-conscious or ashamed
From this reading “I daresay I even blushed; I certainly was embarrassed.”
(of a number) having a fixed and unchanging value
From this reading “Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.”
-ing form of “meditate” — reflect deeply on a subject
From this reading “I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.”
the act of doing or performing again
From this reading “He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"”
articles of the same kind or material; usually used in combination: “silverware”, “software”
From this reading “He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"”
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 “I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.”
In this reading “Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.”
temporarily
In this reading “Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.”
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 Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
being of the achromatic color of maximum darkness; having little or no hue owing to absorption of almost all incident light
From this reading THE LITTLE BLACK BOOK.
past form of “blush” — turn red, as if in embarrassment or shame
From this reading I daresay I even blushed; I certainly was embarrassed.
a written work or composition that has been published (printed on pages bound together)
From this reading THE LITTLE BLACK BOOK.
changeable
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading I daresay I even blushed; I certainly was embarrassed.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading I daresay I even blushed; I certainly was embarrassed.
perceived or discerned
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"
inflected form of “drop” — let fall to the ground
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
feeling or caused to feel ill at ease or self-conscious or ashamed
From this reading I daresay I even blushed; I certainly was embarrassed.
divisible by two
From this reading I daresay I even blushed; I certainly was embarrassed.
opinion or judgment
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
(of a number) having a fixed and unchanging value
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading THE LITTLE BLACK BOOK.
-ing form of “meditate” — reflect deeply on a subject
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
the one or ones belonging to the person speaking
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
fail to perceive or to catch with the senses or the mind
From this reading He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"
a particular point in time
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
a human being
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
past form of “remain” — stay the same; remain in a certain state
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
the act of doing or performing again
From this reading He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
an act of honor or courteous recognition
From this reading He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE LITTLE BLACK BOOK.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Our eyes met, I said; they remained fixed for a moment, and then mine dropped.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
articles of the same kind or material; usually used in combination: “silverware”, “software”
From this reading He was repeating his salutation, "How d'ye do, Miss Ware?"
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading I daresay I even blushed; I certainly was embarrassed.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
during the time that
From this reading I had been, as it were, detected, while meditating upon this capricious person.
Chapter 4 of Willing to Die: A Novel by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu holds 255 sentences, grouped into 51 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 255 sentences of Willing to Die: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 51 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Willing to Die: A Novel by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 255 sentences, grouped into 51 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 51 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 51 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 Willing to Die: A Novel by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 7837 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #34662 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #34662, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1568 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Willing to Die: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 40 chapters of Willing to Die: A Novel 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 Willing to Die: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
