Chapter 9 of Wounded Souls is here in full — 432 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Wounded Souls is here in full — 432 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips. “_Mein lieber Mann_,” she said, very softly. The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand. “I beg you to excuse me, sir. As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
Chapter 9 of Wounded Souls is here in full — 432 sentences across 87 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/86 · 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.
a name given to a product or service
From this reading “The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.”
an unsuccessful ending to a struggle or contest
From this reading “As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.”
a social unit living together
From this reading “As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.”
United States educator who introduced reforms that significantly altered the system of public education (1796-1859)
(military) withdrawal of troops to a more favorable position to escape the enemy's superior forces or after a defeat
From this reading “As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.”
in a stiff manner
From this reading “The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.”
having the back and shoulders rounded; not erect
From this reading “Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.”
possessive form of “wife” — a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
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.
a man who is very old
In this reading “The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.”
In this reading “As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.”
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 As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
declare to be true or admit the existence or reality or truth of
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
call upon in supplication; entreat
From this reading “I beg you to excuse me, sir.
of a stringed instrument; sounded by stroking with a bow
From this reading The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.
a name given to a product or service
From this reading The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.
an unsuccessful ending to a struggle or contest
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
divisible by two
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
accept an excuse for
From this reading “I beg you to excuse me, sir.
a person of German nationality
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
a social unit living together
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
a married man; a woman's partner in marriage
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I beg you to excuse me, sir.
departing or being caused to depart from the true vertical or horizontal
From this reading The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “_Mein lieber Mann_,” she said, very softly.
held up in the air
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
plural of “lip” — either of two fleshy folds of tissue that surround the mouth and play a role in speaking
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.
United States educator who introduced reforms that significantly altered the system of public education (1796-1859)
From this reading “_Mein lieber Mann_,” she said, very softly.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “I beg you to excuse me, sir.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “_Mein lieber Mann_,” she said, very softly.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
above and across; more than
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
have ownership or possession of
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
(military) withdrawal of troops to a more favorable position to escape the enemy's superior forces or after a defeat
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “_Mein lieber Mann_,” she said, very softly.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading “_Mein lieber Mann_,” she said, very softly.
term of address for a man
From this reading “I beg you to excuse me, sir.
with low volume
From this reading “_Mein lieber Mann_,” she said, very softly.
an enlisted man or woman who serves in an army
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
uttered through the medium of speech or characterized by speech; sometimes used in combination
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
in a stiff manner
From this reading The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.
having the back and shoulders rounded; not erect
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Elsa’s mother stooped over her husband, and lifted his hand to her lips.
precisely as stated
From this reading “_Mein lieber Mann_,” she said, very softly.
at the time that
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
possessive form of “wife” — a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading The old man rose stiffly, leaning on his wife’s arm, and bowed to Brand.
inside; before a period of time has passed
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
the words that are spoken
From this reading As a German soldier I do not admit the words ‘defeat’ or ‘retreat,’ even when spoken within my own household.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “I beg you to excuse me, sir.
Chapter 9 of Wounded Souls by Philip Gibbs holds 432 sentences, grouped into 87 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 9 holds 432 sentences of Wounded Souls, unabridged, divided into 87 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Wounded Souls by Philip Gibbs exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 432 sentences, grouped into 87 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 87 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 87 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 9 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 Wounded Souls by Philip Gibbs on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5584 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #65907 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #65907, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 465 minutes of reading across 1117 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Wounded Souls section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of Wounded Souls 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 Wounded Souls, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
