Complete classic literature • Five-line readings • Clear US narration
VELMORA ACADEMY
Academy of Archival Languages & Memory Studies
Menu Close
Bébée
Bébée

Chapter XVII

Cover illustration for Bébée
Context Illustration Reading 1/10 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.
There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.
There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.
They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.
They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.
0:00 / 0:00
Speed 0.75x
AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Bébée

Chapter XVII

Reading 1/10 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.
Line 2
There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.
Line 3
There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.
Line 4
They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.
Line 5
They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

Learner Dictionary

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, audio, and collocations from this reading.

Around preposition US /ərˈaʊnd/

surrounding, or on every side of, something

From this reading “There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.”

Great noun US /great/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.”

Herself pronoun US /hərˈself/

used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object

From this reading “They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.”

Little noun US /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.”

Long noun US /long/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.”

Looked noun US /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.”

Never noun US /never/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.”

One pronoun US /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading “Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.”

Silver noun US /silver/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.”

Themselves pronoun US /ðemˈselvz/

used when the people doing the action are also its object

From this reading “They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.”

Took noun US /took/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.”

Under preposition US /ˈʌndər/

below or beneath something; less than

From this reading “Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.”

All words in this reading · 81

Every word is available to listen to. Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

all

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

altar-vases

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

andeterminerUS /æn/

the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

arbor

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

arbors

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

aroundprepositionUS /ərˈaʊnd/

surrounding, or on every side of, something

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

balcony

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

beans

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

bower

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

cafés

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

centre

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

church

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

coffee

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

cool

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

cream

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

curious

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

dine

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

flowers

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

fromprepositionUS /frʌm/

showing where something starts, or who sent it

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

front

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

garden

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

gay

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

glimpse

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

greatnounUS /great/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

green

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

herselfpronounUS /hərˈself/

used when the woman or girl doing the action is also its object

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

home

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

huge

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

just

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

like

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

littlenounUS /little/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

longnounUS /long/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

lookednounUS /looked/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

meal

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

melon

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

nevernounUS /never/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

orconjunctionUS /ɔːr/

used to join alternatives or possibilities

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

own

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

pots

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

rosebushes

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

said

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

scarlet

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

seen

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

shepronounUS /ʃiː/

a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

sheet

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

silver

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

some

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

stairway

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/

of the kind already mentioned

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

sweet-smelling

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

tables

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

themselvespronounUS /ðemˈselvz/

used when the people doing the action are also its object

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

Then

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

There

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

TheypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

tooknounUS /took/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

trees

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

trellised

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

twisting

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

underprepositionUS /ˈʌndər/

below or beneath something; less than

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

water

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a little sheet of water in front of it and a gay garden around.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

whatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

white

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading There was a balcony and a wooden stairway; there were long trellised arbors, and little white tables, and great rosebushes like her own at home.

wines

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading They had a meal, the like of which she had never seen; such a huge melon in the centre of it, and curious wines, and coffee or cream in silver pots, or what looked like silver to her--"just like the altar-vases in the church," she said to herself.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading They had an arbor all to themselves; a cool sweet-smelling bower of green, with a glimpse of scarlet from the flowers of some twisting beans.

wooden

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading Then he took her to dine at one of the wooden cafés under the trees.