Chapter 12 of A Poor Man's House is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter XII
Chapter 12 of A Poor Man's House is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
[Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake. "I 'ouldn' go to say wi' 'em, not if.... A purty fellow, thic 'Gustus Theodore! They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long. Bain't no gude tu hisself nor nobody else.
Chapter 12 of A Poor Man's House is here in full — 401 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
plural of “call” — a telephone connection
From this reading “They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.”
the men and women who man a vehicle (ship, aircraft, etc.)
From this reading “[Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.”
plural of “get” — a return on a shot that seemed impossible to reach and would normally have resulted in a point for the opponent
From this reading “[Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.”
verbal abuse; a crude substitute for argument
From this reading “They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.”
no person; not anyone
From this reading “Bain't no gude tu hisself nor nobody else.”
the period of time that is happening now; any continuous stretch of time including the moment of speech
From this reading “They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.”
recurring again and again
From this reading “[Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.”
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading “[Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.”
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.
leave a vehicle, aircraft, etc.
In this reading “[Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.”
travel across or pass over
In this reading “They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.”
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 [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bain't no gude tu hisself nor nobody else.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
plural of “call” — a telephone connection
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
the men and women who man a vehicle (ship, aircraft, etc.)
From this reading [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bain't no gude tu hisself nor nobody else.
a quad with a square body
From this reading "I 'ouldn' go to say wi' 'em, not if....
half the width of an em
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
a boy or man
From this reading A purty fellow, thic 'Gustus Theodore!
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
plural of “get” — a return on a shot that seemed impossible to reach and would normally have resulted in a point for the opponent
From this reading [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading "I 'ouldn' go to say wi' 'em, not if....
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bain't no gude tu hisself nor nobody else.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A purty fellow, thic 'Gustus Theodore!
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bain't no gude tu hisself nor nobody else.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I 'ouldn' go to say wi' 'em, not if....
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "I 'ouldn' go to say wi' 'em, not if....
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
verbal abuse; a crude substitute for argument
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
not any; not one
From this reading Bain't no gude tu hisself nor nobody else.
no person; not anyone
From this reading Bain't no gude tu hisself nor nobody else.
and not; used after a negative to add a second negative
From this reading Bain't no gude tu hisself nor nobody else.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "I 'ouldn' go to say wi' 'em, not if....
the period of time that is happening now; any continuous stretch of time including the moment of speech
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I 'ouldn' go to say wi' 'em, not if....
above and across; more than
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
recurring again and again
From this reading [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
express in words
From this reading "I 'ouldn' go to say wi' 'em, not if....
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A purty fellow, thic 'Gustus Theodore!
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading A purty fellow, thic 'Gustus Theodore!
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "I 'ouldn' go to say wi' 'em, not if....
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Bain't no gude tu hisself nor nobody else.
the brother of your father or mother; the husband of your aunt
From this reading [Sidenote: _AND GETS OFF_] "That _be_ a purty crew!" repeated Uncle Jake.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading They calls chil'ern by names nowadays, but they called he 'Gustus Theodore, an' us can't get over thic, so us al'ays calls 'en 'Gustus Theodore in long.
a midwestern state in north central United States
From this reading "I 'ouldn' go to say wi' 'em, not if....
Chapter 12 of A Poor Man's House by Stephen Sydney Reynolds holds 401 sentences, grouped into 81 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 12 holds 401 sentences of A Poor Man's House, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 12 of A Poor Man's House by Stephen Sydney Reynolds exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 401 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 12 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 Poor Man's House by Stephen Sydney Reynolds on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4848 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #26126 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #26126, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 404 minutes of reading across 970 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Poor Man's House section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 12 chapters of A Poor Man's House 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 Poor Man's House, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
