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Under Two Flags
Under Two Flags

Chapter XVI

Cover illustration for Under Two Flags
Context Illustration Reading 1/34 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
CIGARETTE EN BACCHANTE.
Vanitas vanitatum!
The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.
The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.
Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.
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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.

Under Two Flags

Chapter XVI

Reading 1/34 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
CIGARETTE EN BACCHANTE.
Line 2
Vanitas vanitatum!
Line 3
The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.
Line 4
The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.
Line 5
Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

Learner Dictionary

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

Glowing noun US /ˈglowing/

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

From this reading “The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.”

Once noun US /once/

an important story-specific word used in this passage

From this reading “The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.”

Over preposition US /ˈoʊvər/

above and across; more than

From this reading “The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.”

Under preposition US /ˈʌndər/

below or beneath something; less than

From this reading “The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.”

All words in this reading · 72

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

all

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

altars

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

asconjunctionUS /æz/

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

Asenath

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

Augustus

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

BACCHANTE

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

From this reading CIGARETTE EN BACCHANTE.

banishment

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

bear

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

beauty

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

beguiled

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

bondage

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

Bubastis

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

came

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

canter

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

chatter

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

CIGARETTE

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

From this reading CIGARETTE EN BACCHANTE.

darling

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

death

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

desolation

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

down

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

dragomen

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

dust

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

Egypt

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

EN

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

From this reading CIGARETTE EN BACCHANTE.

fallen

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

fiat

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

flood

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

foliage

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

forget

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

glowingnounUS /ˈglowing/

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

Haussmann

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

Herodotus

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

hillocks

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

inprepositionUS /ɪn/

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

Israelite

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

Julian

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

lake-like

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

lies

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

looking

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

Lutetian

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

mules

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

mused

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

Nile

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

once

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

overprepositionUS /ˈoʊvər/

above and across; more than

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

Palace

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

rings

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

sale

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

saluted

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

shadowy

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

shapeless

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

sledge-hammer

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

stucco

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

Sun

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

Temple

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

theirdeterminerUS /ðer/

belonging to the people or things already mentioned

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

tongues

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

tourists

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.

underprepositionUS /ˈʌndər/

below or beneath something; less than

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

Vanitas

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

From this reading Vanitas vanitatum!

vanitatum

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

From this reading Vanitas vanitatum!

wake

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

From this reading Where the Lutetian Palace of Julian saluted their darling as Augustus, the sledge-hammer and the stucco of the Haussmann fiat bear desolation in their wake.

water

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

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

whereconjunctionUS /wer/

in or at the place that

From this reading The dust of death lies over the fallen altars of Bubastis, where once all Egypt came down the flood of glowing Nile, and Herodotus mused under the shadowy foliage, looking on the lake-like rings of water.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

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

From this reading The Temple of the Sun, where the beauty of Asenath beguiled the Israelite to forget his sale into bondage and banishment, lies in shapeless hillocks, over which canter the mules of dragomen and chatter the tongues of tourists.