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Poor Relations
Poor Relations

Chapter XXIV

Cover illustration for Poor Relations
Context Illustration Reading 1/80 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.
Never before had his almost divine meekness been ruffled.
He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!
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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.

Poor Relations

Chapter XXIV

Reading 1/80 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.
Line 2
Never before had his almost divine meekness been ruffled.
Line 3
He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!
Line 4
Line 5

Learner Dictionary

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

Been auxiliary verb US /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading “Never before had his almost divine meekness been ruffled.”

Before preposition US /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading “Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.”

Could modal verb US /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading “He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!”

Course noun US /course/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.”

Life noun US /life/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.”

Look noun US /look/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!”

Never noun US /never/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.”

These determiner US /ðiːz/

the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned

From this reading “Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.”

Uttered noun US /ˈuttered/

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

From this reading “Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.”

All words in this reading · 55

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 Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

all

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

almost

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

From this reading Never before had his almost divine meekness been ruffled.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

Aristides

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading Never before had his almost divine meekness been ruffled.

befell

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

bitterness

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

childlike

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

coursenounUS /course/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

divine

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

From this reading Never before had his almost divine meekness been ruffled.

genius

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

gold

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

HepronounUS /hiː/

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

heart

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

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

From this reading Never before had his almost divine meekness been ruffled.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

kindness

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

knew

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

lifenounUS /life/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

looknounUS /look/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

lot

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

maltreated

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

meekness

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

From this reading Never before had his almost divine meekness been ruffled.

mischances

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

nature

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

NevernounUS /never/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

ovine

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

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

Pons

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

resigned

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

ruffled

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

From this reading Never before had his almost divine meekness been ruffled.

Schmucke

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

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

see

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

smiled

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

sublime

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

suchdeterminerUS /sʌtʃ/

of the kind already mentioned

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

thesedeterminerUS /ðiːz/

the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

treasury

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

truly

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

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

unknown

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

From this reading He had smiled childlike on all the mischances that befell him, but he could not look and see his sublime Pons maltreated; his Pons, his unknown Aristides, the genius resigned to his lot, the nature that knew no bitterness, the treasury of kindness, the heart of gold!

utterednounUS /ˈuttered/

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

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.

words

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

From this reading Never before in the course of a truly ovine life had Schmucke uttered such words as these.