Chapter 18 of A Black Adonis is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVIII
Chapter 18 of A Black Adonis is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A BURGLAR IN THE HOUSE. Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two. She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand. There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence. As she lay there she heard a slight noise, as of some one moving about.
Chapter 18 of A Black Adonis is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5
These definitions explain words found in the current reading and keep every example grounded in its original sentence.
Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, and audio.
A person who commits illegal entry into a building with intent to steal valuable treasures.
From this reading “A BURGLAR IN THE HOUSE.”
a timepiece that shows the time of day
From this reading “Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.”
any of numerous flowerless and seedless vascular plants having true roots from a rhizome and fronds that uncurl upward; reproduce by spores
From this reading “Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.”
to hook or entangle
From this reading “There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence.”
plural of “midland” — a town in west central Texas
From this reading “Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.”
an extended fictional work in prose; usually in the form of a story
From this reading “She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.”
a secret scheme to do something (especially something underhand or illegal)
From this reading “There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence.”
become or cause to become undone by separating the fibers or threads of
From this reading “There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
In this reading “As she lay there she heard a slight noise, as of some one moving about.”
In this reading “Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.”
In this reading “She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.”
In this reading “As she lay there she heard a slight noise, as of some one moving about.”
Every word in these five lines is listed here, and every one of them can be played on its own.
Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading A BURGLAR IN THE HOUSE.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading As she lay there she heard a slight noise, as of some one moving about.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading As she lay there she heard a slight noise, as of some one moving about.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
not in a state of sleep; completely conscious
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
the supreme effort one can make
From this reading There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence.
A person who commits illegal entry into a building with intent to steal valuable treasures.
From this reading A BURGLAR IN THE HOUSE.
a timepiece that shows the time of day
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence.
any of numerous flowerless and seedless vascular plants having true roots from a rhizome and fronds that uncurl upward; reproduce by spores
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “a”; a small but indefinite number
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading As she lay there she heard a slight noise, as of some one moving about.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
to hook or entangle
From this reading There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence.
a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families
From this reading A BURGLAR IN THE HOUSE.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading A BURGLAR IN THE HOUSE.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
put into a certain place or abstract location
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
plural of “midland” — a town in west central Texas
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
in motion
From this reading As she lay there she heard a slight noise, as of some one moving about.
a form of address for a man
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
Periods of darkness between sunset and sunrise.
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound)
From this reading As she lay there she heard a slight noise, as of some one moving about.
an extended fictional work in prose; usually in the form of a story
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading As she lay there she heard a slight noise, as of some one moving about.
a secret scheme to do something (especially something underhand or illegal)
From this reading There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence.
completely prepared or in condition for immediate action or use or progress
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
Complete absence of sound; a state of quietness and stillness.
From this reading There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence.
a deliberate discourteous act (usually as an expression of anger or disapproval)
From this reading As she lay there she heard a slight noise, as of some one moving about.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading As she lay there she heard a slight noise, as of some one moving about.
(used in combination) affected by something overwhelming
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading A BURGLAR IN THE HOUSE.
in or at that place or location
From this reading There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence.
the process of using your mind to consider something carefully
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
become or cause to become undone by separating the fibers or threads of
From this reading There was a hitch in the plot that she could best unravel in the silence.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading She was thinking of her second novel, now nearly ready for Mr. Roseleaf's hand.
at the time that
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
having great (or a certain) extent from one side to the other
From this reading Millicent Fern lay wide awake a few nights later, at Midlands, when the clock struck two.
Chapter 18 of A Black Adonis by Linn Boyd Porter holds 109 sentences, grouped into 22 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the source edition, unabridged, and the chapter records which sentences cover which part of the work so that nothing is dropped. Every word can be tapped for its pronunciation and dictionary entry.
Chapter 18 holds 109 sentences of A Black Adonis, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 18 of A Black Adonis by Linn Boyd Porter exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 109 sentences, grouped into 22 sections of at most 5 sentences so that a reader can take the chapter in steady, finishable pieces. The chapter also stores a coverage record mapping every one of its sentences to a part of the work, which is how the edition demonstrates that no line was dropped.
Work through the 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 sections in this chapter is short enough to read once, hear once, and then re-read with the vocabulary in view. Tapping a word plays it alone and opens its dictionary entry with IPA, part of speech and meaning, so the reader is never forced to guess a pronunciation from spelling. Working section by section keeps a long chapter from becoming an undifferentiated wall of text, which is the usual reason a reader abandons a work of this period.
Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 18 can be played aloud in United States English.
Audio covers the whole chapter: any sentence can be played, and any single word within it can be played on its own. The voice uses United States English. For a work of this period that matters, because spelling is an unreliable guide to pronunciation for vocabulary that has fallen out of daily use, and a learner who guesses wrong tends to keep the error. Hearing the word in its own sentence, and then alone, settles it.
Common questions about reading A Black Adonis by Linn Boyd Porter on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5408 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #26599 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #26599, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 450 minutes of reading across 1082 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Black Adonis section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 30 chapters of A Black Adonis to begin.
Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.
Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in A Black Adonis, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
