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Idols
Idols

Chapter VII

Cover illustration for Idols
Context Illustration Reading 1/53 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
“I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.”
The speaker was Israel Hart.
The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.
The time was a mid-autumn Sunday afternoon.
A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Idols

Chapter VII

Reading 1/53 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
“I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.”
Line 2
The speaker was Israel Hart.
Line 3
The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.
Line 4
The time was a mid-autumn Sunday afternoon.
Line 5
A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

Learner Dictionary

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

Afternoon noun US /ˈafternoon/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading “The time was a mid-autumn Sunday afternoon.”

Great noun US /great/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.”

Have auxiliary verb US /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading ““I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.””

Oil noun US /ɔɪl/

A viscous liquid derived from petroleum or plants, stored in large earthen jars.

From this reading “A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.”

Something pronoun US /ˈsʌmθɪŋ/

a thing, without saying which

From this reading ““I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.””

Time noun US /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The time was a mid-autumn Sunday afternoon.”

Upon preposition US /əˈpɑːn/

a formal word for “on”

From this reading “A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.”

All words in this reading · 58

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 The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

afternoonnounUS /ˈafternoon/

a story-specific word describing an important person, object, action, or idea in this passage

From this reading The time was a mid-autumn Sunday afternoon.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

apartment

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

carpet

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

cast

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

cheerful

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

commodious

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

daughter

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

From this reading “I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.”

drive

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

features

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

fire

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

flickering

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

front

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

gleams

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

greatnounUS /great/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

Hart

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

From this reading The speaker was Israel Hart.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading “I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.”

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

From this reading “I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.”

iron

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

Israel

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

From this reading The speaker was Israel Hart.

library

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

mid-autumn

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

From this reading The time was a mid-autumn Sunday afternoon.

most

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

From this reading “I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.”

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

oilnounUS /ɔɪl/

A viscous liquid derived from petroleum or plants, stored in large earthen jars.

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

overlooking

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

pictures

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

place

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

safe

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

say

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

From this reading “I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.”

serious

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

From this reading “I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.”

showed

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

solid

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

somethingpronounUS /ˈsʌmθɪŋ/

a thing, without saying which

From this reading “I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.”

speaker

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

From this reading The speaker was Israel Hart.

striking

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

study

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

Sunday

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

From this reading The time was a mid-autumn Sunday afternoon.

surfaces

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

table

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading The speaker was Israel Hart.

three

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

timenounUS /time/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading The time was a mid-autumn Sunday afternoon.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading “I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.”

Turkey

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

up

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

uponprepositionUS /əˈpɑːn/

a formal word for “on”

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

varnished

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

walls

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

warmth

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

From this reading A cheerful fire showed up the warmth of a Turkey carpet, and cast flickering gleams upon the varnished surfaces of the three oil pictures on the walls.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

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

From this reading The speaker was Israel Hart.

wereauxiliary verbUS /wɜːr/

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

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

From this reading The place, his study, a commodious apartment overlooking the front drive, of which the most striking features were a great library table and a solid iron safe.

youpronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading “I have something serious to say to you, my daughter.”