Chapter 27 of A Black Adonis is here in full — 174 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXVII
Chapter 27 of A Black Adonis is here in full — 174 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"I PLAYED AND I LOST." Roseleaf did not immediately reply. He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong. He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use. "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
Chapter 27 of A Black Adonis is here in full — 174 sentences across 35 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/34 · 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.
from appearances alone
From this reading “He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use.”
inflected form of “busy” — keep busy with
From this reading “He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.”
a tight cluster of people or things
From this reading “He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.”
lowest in rank or importance
From this reading “"I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.”
an effortful attempt to attain a goal
From this reading “He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.”
unique or specific to a person or thing or category
From this reading “He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.”
(of games) engaged in
From this reading “"I PLAYED AND I LOST."”
the act of tying or binding things together
From this reading “He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.”
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 “He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.”
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 He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "I PLAYED AND I LOST."
from appearances alone
From this reading He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
inflected form of “busy” — keep busy with
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading Roseleaf did not immediately reply.
after an unspecified period of time or an especially long delay
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
the phonological or orthographic sound or appearance of a word that can be used to describe or identify something
From this reading He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
solid-hoofed herbivorous quadruped domesticated since prehistoric times
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I PLAYED AND I LOST."
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
From this reading Roseleaf did not immediately reply.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
a sense of concern with and curiosity about someone or something
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
a tight cluster of people or things
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use.
no longer in your possession or control; unable to be found or recovered
From this reading "I PLAYED AND I LOST."
lowest in rank or importance
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
engage in
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Roseleaf did not immediately reply.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use.
an effortful attempt to attain a goal
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
unique or specific to a person or thing or category
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
(of games) engaged in
From this reading "I PLAYED AND I LOST."
a statement (either spoken or written) that is made to reply to a question or request or criticism or accusation
From this reading Roseleaf did not immediately reply.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Roseleaf did not immediately reply.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
having strength or power greater than average or expected
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
the act of someone who picks up or takes something
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
the quality of a person's voice
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
the act of tying or binding things together
From this reading He busied himself by tying his horse to a tree, taking particular pains to make the knot good and strong.
the act of using
From this reading He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use.
feel or have a desire for; want strongly
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
desired or wished for or sought
From this reading He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use.
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
used to ask for information about something
From this reading He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
the words that are spoken
From this reading He apparently wanted a little time to think what form of words to use.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I want you to see something that will interest you," he said, finally, in the lowest tone that could well be heard.
Chapter 27 of A Black Adonis by Linn Boyd Porter holds 174 sentences, grouped into 35 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 27 holds 174 sentences of A Black Adonis, unabridged, divided into 35 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 27 of A Black Adonis by Linn Boyd Porter exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 174 sentences, grouped into 35 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 35 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 35 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 27 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.
