Chapter 29 of A Boy's Fortune is here in full — 71 sentences across 15 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIX
Chapter 29 of A Boy's Fortune is here in full — 71 sentences across 15 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
BEN IS MISSED. Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained. He did not open his eyes till five o'clock. Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform. But M. Bourdon did not hear him bustling around as usual.
Chapter 29 of A Boy's Fortune is here in full — 71 sentences across 15 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/14 · 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.
full of energetic and noisy activity
From this reading “But M. Bourdon did not hear him bustling around as usual.”
imaginative thoughts indulged in while awake
From this reading “Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.”
the act of forming or establishing something
From this reading “Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.”
not caught with the senses or the mind
From this reading “BEN IS MISSED.”
carry out or perform an action
From this reading “Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.”
agitating a liquid with an implement
From this reading “Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.”
maintained at length without interruption or weakening
From this reading “Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.”
not fair; marked by injustice or partiality or deception
From this reading “Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.”
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.
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.
surrounding, or on every side of, something
From this reading But M. Bourdon did not hear him bustling around as usual.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
a mountain or tall hill
From this reading BEN IS MISSED.
a pipe of the bagpipe that is tuned to produce a single continuous tone
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
full of energetic and noisy activity
From this reading But M. Bourdon did not hear him bustling around as usual.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But M. Bourdon did not hear him bustling around as usual.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading He did not open his eyes till five o'clock.
imaginative thoughts indulged in while awake
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
plural of “duty” — the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
the act of forming or establishing something
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
opinion or judgment
From this reading He did not open his eyes till five o'clock.
the cardinal number that is the sum of four and one
From this reading He did not open his eyes till five o'clock.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He did not open his eyes till five o'clock.
perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading But M. Bourdon did not hear him bustling around as usual.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading But M. Bourdon did not hear him bustling around as usual.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading BEN IS MISSED.
and nothing more
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
something that is lost
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
at the same time but in another place
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
not caught with the senses or the mind
From this reading BEN IS MISSED.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
according to the clock
From this reading He did not open his eyes till five o'clock.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
To move from a closed position.
From this reading He did not open his eyes till five o'clock.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
carry out or perform an action
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
a natural and periodic state of rest during which consciousness of the world is suspended
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
inflected form of “sleep” — be asleep
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
agitating a liquid with an implement
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
maintained at length without interruption or weakening
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
up to a particular time
From this reading He did not open his eyes till five o'clock.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
not fair; marked by injustice or partiality or deception
From this reading Meanwhile M. Bourdon slept the sleep of the just--or the unjust--not dreaming of the loss his establishment had sustained.
occurring or encountered or experienced or observed frequently or in accordance with regular practice or procedure
From this reading But M. Bourdon did not hear him bustling around as usual.
under normal conditions
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Usually at that hour Francois was stirring, as he had morning duties to perform.
Chapter 29 of A Boy's Fortune by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 71 sentences, grouped into 15 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 29 holds 71 sentences of A Boy's Fortune, unabridged, divided into 15 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 29 of A Boy's Fortune by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 71 sentences, grouped into 15 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 15 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 15 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 29 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.
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Yes. All 4381 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #52017 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #52017, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 365 minutes of reading across 877 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
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Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in A Boy's Fortune, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
