Chapter 29 of Wives and Widows is here in full — 114 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIX
Chapter 29 of Wives and Widows is here in full — 114 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
OLD MRS. BOSWORTH'S VISIT. Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting. If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought. Something more subtile than her own will held her confidence back.
Chapter 29 of Wives and Widows is here in full — 114 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/22 · 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 “compact” — a small cosmetics case with a mirror; to be carried in a woman's purse
From this reading “Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.”
freedom from doubt; belief in yourself and your abilities
From this reading “Something more subtile than her own will held her confidence back.”
an external body part that projects from the body
From this reading “If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.”
intense sorrow caused by loss of a loved one (especially by death)
From this reading “If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.”
continuing or enduring without marked change in status or condition or place
From this reading “Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.”
not often
From this reading “Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.”
toned down
From this reading “If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.”
a mental position from which things are viewed
From this reading “If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.”
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.
be restored
In this reading “If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.”
In this reading “Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.”
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 Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading BOSWORTH'S VISIT.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
plural of “compact” — a small cosmetics case with a mirror; to be carried in a woman's purse
From this reading Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.
freedom from doubt; belief in yourself and your abilities
From this reading Something more subtile than her own will held her confidence back.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
the feeling of lively and cheerful joy
From this reading Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.
an external body part that projects from the body
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
intense sorrow caused by loss of a loved one (especially by death)
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
the locus of feelings and intuitions
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
occupied or in the control of; often used in combination
From this reading Something more subtile than her own will held her confidence back.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
continuing or enduring without marked change in status or condition or place
From this reading Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.
produced by a manufacturing process
From this reading Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading Something more subtile than her own will held her confidence back.
a form of address for a married woman
From this reading OLD MRS.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading OLD MRS.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading Something more subtile than her own will held her confidence back.
not often
From this reading Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.
toned down
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading Something more subtile than her own will held her confidence back.
a mental position from which things are viewed
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
the territory occupied by one of the constituent administrative districts of a nation
From this reading Compacts made in a state of excitement are seldom lasting.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Something more subtile than her own will held her confidence back.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading Something more subtile than her own will held her confidence back.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
in the direction of
From this reading If Jessie's heart had softened toward Mrs. Dennison in the extremity of her grief, it came back to the old standpoint as that grief took thought.
go to see a place, as for entertainment
From this reading BOSWORTH'S VISIT.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading Something more subtile than her own will held her confidence back.
Chapter 29 of Wives and Widows by Ann S. (Ann Sophia) Stephens holds 114 sentences, grouped into 23 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 29 holds 114 sentences of Wives and Widows, unabridged, divided into 23 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 29 of Wives and Widows by Ann S. (Ann Sophia) Stephens exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 114 sentences, grouped into 23 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 23 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 23 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 29 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 7751 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #36374 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #36374, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1551 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Words and structures a reader meets early in Wives and Widows, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
