The One Hoss Shay
The One Hoss Shay by Oliver Wendell Holmes is available here as the complete text, split into 32 reading sections of 5 sentences, each with audio and tap-to-define vocabulary.
The One Hoss Shay With its Companion Poems How the Old Horse Won the Bet & The Broomstick Train by Oliver Wendell Holmes. Complete source text from Project Gutenberg eBook #30279.
Course Syllabus
This syllabus gives direct access to every published chapter and its complete sequence of five-line English readings.
The One Hoss Shay
Select a chapter to continue in the Cinema Lecture Hall with line-by-line English learning.
0 of 31 original contextual illustrations are live; remaining readings use the book cover while their artwork is reviewed.
This edition of The One Hoss Shay by Oliver Wendell Holmes carries the complete text of Project Gutenberg eBook #30279, divided into 1 chapters and 32 reading sections of 5 sentences each. Every sentence of the source is kept, and each chapter records which sentences cover which part of the story. Any word can be tapped for its pronunciation and dictionary entry.
Where can I read The One Hoss Shay in full?
The complete text of The One Hoss Shay is here, taken from Project Gutenberg eBook #30279 and divided into 32 sections.
This page carries the whole of The One Hoss Shay by Oliver Wendell Holmes, not an abridgement or a summary. The text comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #30279, with the Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence removed so that only the work itself remains. It runs to 159 sentences across 1 chapters. Each chapter stores a record of which sentences cover which part of the work, so nothing is quietly dropped between the source edition and the page you read.
How is The One Hoss Shay divided for reading?
The One Hoss Shay is presented in 1 chapters, each split into sections of 5 sentences for steady reading.
Rather than presenting The One Hoss Shay as unbroken pages, the text is grouped into 32 sections of 5 sentences each. A section is short enough to hold in mind at once, which suits a reader working in a second language or returning to a long work in short sittings. The sections are gathered into 1 chapters.
Can I hear The One Hoss Shay read aloud?
Yes. Every sentence and every individual word of The One Hoss Shay can be played aloud, and each word shows its dictionary entry.
Every sentence of The One Hoss Shay can be played aloud, and so can any single word within it. Tapping a word plays it on its own and opens its dictionary entry, with the pronunciation shown in IPA alongside the part of speech and meaning. The reading voice uses United States English. This matters most for a work of this period, where a reader meets vocabulary and turns of phrase that are no longer in daily use and cannot be guessed reliably from spelling alone.
Questions about reading The One Hoss Shay
Common questions about reading The One Hoss Shay by Oliver Wendell Holmes on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Is this the complete text of The One Hoss Shay?
Yes. All 159 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #30279 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Which edition of The One Hoss Shay is used?
Project Gutenberg eBook #30279, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
How long does The One Hoss Shay take to read?
About 13 minutes of reading across 32 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to read The One Hoss Shay section by section
How to work through The One Hoss Shay section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
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Open a chapter
Choose one of the 1 chapters of The One Hoss Shay to begin.
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Read one section
Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.
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Listen and tap
Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Vocabulary met early in The One Hoss Shay
Words and structures a reader meets early in The One Hoss Shay, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
- Horse
- A word that appears in the opening chapter of The One Hoss Shay; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
- Broomstick
- A word that appears in the opening chapter of The One Hoss Shay; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
- Train
- A word that appears in the opening chapter of The One Hoss Shay; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
- Boston
- A word that appears in the opening chapter of The One Hoss Shay; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.