Clearly then the professor of languages should be able to give a very lucid explanation of first names, or let him be assured he will only talk nonsense about the rest.
— from Cratylus by Plato

She was sixty-four, when, yielding to the urgent entreaties of her friends, she consented to give a "very last" exhibition of her art.
— from A Book of the Play Studies and Illustrations of Histrionic Story, Life, and Character by Dutton Cook

Accordingly he piaffed away, in high spirits and confidence, to the head of Fergus's regiment, although understanding not a word of Gaelic and very little English.
— from Waverley; Or, 'Tis Sixty Years Since — Volume 2 by Walter Scott

In the plates all colonies, aside from the molds, were counted as bacteria, but this would not give a very large error, as yeast does not reproduce at the same rate as do bacteria.
— from Ketchup: Methods of Manufacture; Microscopic Examination by A. W. (Arvill Wayne) Bitting

“Gun-cotton, boys,” he said, “is a composition which con—” Doubtless George would have given a very lucid explanation of the nature and virtues of gun-cotton; but at this point, Steve, who still held the little “tube,” said impatiently, “Now, what do I care about gun-cotton?
— from A Blundering Boy: A Humorous Story by Bruce Weston Munro

If their orbits could be seen as lines of light, they would appear, in general, as very long ellipses.
— from Half-hours with the Telescope Being a Popular Guide to the Use of the Telescope as a Means of Amusement and Instruction. by Richard A. (Richard Anthony) Proctor

In the Dakshinadêśa there lived a Brâhmiṇ boy who from his childhood was given a very liberal education in Sanskṛit.
— from Tales of the Sun; or, Folklore of Southern India by Pandit Natesa Sastri

She saw the dog-cart standing by the gate, a village lad erect at the horse’s head.
— from My Lady Nobody: A Novel by Maarten Maartens

"We talked about the crucifix, and Marzio gave a very long explanation of the way it was made.
— from Marzio's Crucifix, and Zoroaster by F. Marion (Francis Marion) Crawford