Chapter 1 of A pound of prevention is here in full — 308 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of A pound of prevention is here in full — 308 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had. All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man. Three men sat at the other side of the table. "No use trying to gloss it over," he said. The young men nodded.
Chapter 1 of A pound of prevention is here in full — 308 sentences across 62 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/61 · 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.
fail to do something; leave something undone
From this reading “_They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.”
an explanation or definition of an obscure word in a text
From this reading “"No use trying to gloss it over," he said.”
headdress that protects the head from bad weather; has shaped crown and usually a brim
From this reading “All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.”
the food served and eaten at one time
From this reading “All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.”
inflected form of “nod” — express or signify by nodding
From this reading “The young men nodded.”
plural of “one” — the smallest whole number or a numeral representing this number
From this reading “_They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.”
just preceding something else in time or order
From this reading “_They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.”
depleted of strength or energy
From this reading “All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.”
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 “Three men sat at the other side of the table.”
a man who is very old
In this reading “All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.”
In this reading “The young men nodded.”
In this reading “Three men sat at the other side of the table.”
In this reading “All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.”
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 All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
(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 All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading _They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Three men sat at the other side of the table.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
fail to do something; leave something undone
From this reading _They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
applying to all or most members of a category or group
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
an explanation or definition of an obscure word in a text
From this reading "No use trying to gloss it over," he said.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading _They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.
headdress that protects the head from bad weather; has shaped crown and usually a brim
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
the -ing form of “have”
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "No use trying to gloss it over," he said.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "No use trying to gloss it over," he said.
and nothing more
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
inflected form of “know” — be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading _They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.
the food served and eaten at one time
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
the force of workers available
From this reading Three men sat at the other side of the table.
used to say something is possible but not certain
From this reading _They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
not any; not one
From this reading "No use trying to gloss it over," he said.
inflected form of “nod” — express or signify by nodding
From this reading The young men nodded.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Three men sat at the other side of the table.
(used especially of persons) having lived for a relatively long time or attained a specific age
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
plural of “one” — the smallest whole number or a numeral representing this number
From this reading _They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading Three men sat at the other side of the table.
above and across; more than
From this reading "No use trying to gloss it over," he said.
just preceding something else in time or order
From this reading _They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.
a rational motive for a belief or action
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "No use trying to gloss it over," he said.
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
From this reading Three men sat at the other side of the table.
a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
From this reading Three men sat at the other side of the table.
a set of data arranged in rows and columns
From this reading Three men sat at the other side of the table.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading _They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as the previous ones had.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one
From this reading Three men sat at the other side of the table.
depleted of strength or energy
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "No use trying to gloss it over," he said.
hard to endure
From this reading "No use trying to gloss it over," he said.
the act of using
From this reading "No use trying to gloss it over," he said.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
not having, not using, or not accompanied by
From this reading All the more reason, then, for having one good meal!_ Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man.
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading The young men nodded.
Chapter 1 of A pound of prevention by G. C. Edmondson holds 308 sentences, grouped into 62 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 1 holds 308 sentences of A pound of prevention, unabridged, divided into 62 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of A pound of prevention by G. C. Edmondson exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 308 sentences, grouped into 62 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 62 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 62 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 1 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 pound of prevention by G. C. Edmondson on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 308 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #71870 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #71870, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 25 minutes of reading across 62 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A pound of prevention section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of A pound of prevention 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 pound of prevention, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
