Chapter 6 of A Boy's Town is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of A Boy's Town is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
XVIII. THE NATURE OF BOYS. I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys. One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be. They did not wish to be so, but they could not help it.
Chapter 6 of A Boy's Town is here in full — 406 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
equally
From this reading “One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.”
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading “THE NATURE OF BOYS.”
belonging to or participated in by a community as a whole; public
From this reading “I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.”
a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred
From this reading “One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.”
the essential qualities or characteristics by which something is recognized
From this reading “THE NATURE OF BOYS.”
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading “I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.”
so lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness
From this reading “One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.”
employed in accomplishing something
From this reading “One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
equally
From this reading One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.
for the reason that
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
a youthful male person
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
plural of “boy” — a youthful male person
From this reading THE NATURE OF BOYS.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading They did not wish to be so, but they could not help it.
belonging to or participated in by a community as a whole; public
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading They did not wish to be so, but they could not help it.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading They did not wish to be so, but they could not help it.
a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred
From this reading One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading They did not wish to be so, but they could not help it.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading They did not wish to be so, but they could not help it.
a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by “as” or “too” or “so” or “that”; amounting to a large but indefinite number
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
the essential qualities or characteristics by which something is recognized
From this reading THE NATURE OF BOYS.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE NATURE OF BOYS.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.
beyond or deviating from the usual or expected
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
express in words
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE NATURE OF BOYS.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
so lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness
From this reading One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
employed in accomplishing something
From this reading One tiresome fact about boys is that they are so much alike; or used to be.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading I TELL these things about my boy, not so much because they were peculiar to him as because I think they are, many of them, common to all boys.
hope for; have a wish
From this reading They did not wish to be so, but they could not help it.
the cardinal number that is the sum of seventeen and one
From this reading XVIII.
Chapter 6 of A Boy's Town by William Dean Howells holds 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 6 holds 406 sentences of A Boy's Town, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of A Boy's Town by William Dean Howells exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 406 sentences, grouped into 82 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 82 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 82 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 6 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 2427 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #28727 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #28727, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 202 minutes of reading across 486 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Boy's Town section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of A Boy's Town 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 Boy's Town, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
