Chapter 4 of A Prisoner of Morro is here in full — 72 sentences across 15 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of A Prisoner of Morro is here in full — 72 sentences across 15 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
IN COMMAND OF THE PRIZE. It was a moment of horrible peril. Clif's blood fairly froze. But quick as a flash his arm shot up. And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
Chapter 4 of A Prisoner of Morro is here in full — 72 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.
coming down or downward
From this reading “And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.”
inflected form of “freeze” — stop moving or become immobilized
From this reading “Clif's blood fairly froze.”
past form of “glare” — look at with a fixed gaze
From this reading “And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.”
a source of danger; a possibility of incurring loss or misfortune
From this reading “It was a moment of horrible peril.”
something given for victory or superiority in a contest or competition or for winning a lottery
From this reading “IN COMMAND OF THE PRIZE.”
an intense or violent exertion
From this reading “And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.”
the act of distorting something so it seems to mean something it was not intended to mean
From this reading “And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.”
a joint between the distal end of the radius and the proximal row of carpal bones
From this reading “And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.”
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 It was a moment of horrible peril.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading But quick as a flash his arm shot up.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading But quick as a flash his arm shot up.
The red fluid that circulates in the heart and blood vessels.
From this reading Clif's blood fairly froze.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But quick as a flash his arm shot up.
inflected form of “catch” — discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Clif's blood fairly froze.
an authoritative direction or instruction to do something
From this reading IN COMMAND OF THE PRIZE.
coming down or downward
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
every one of two or more people or things, taken separately
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
opinion or judgment
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
to certain extent or degree
From this reading Clif's blood fairly froze.
gleam or glow intermittently
From this reading But quick as a flash his arm shot up.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
inflected form of “freeze” — stop moving or become immobilized
From this reading Clif's blood fairly froze.
past form of “glare” — look at with a fixed gaze
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading But quick as a flash his arm shot up.
provoking horror
From this reading It was a moment of horrible peril.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading IN COMMAND OF THE PRIZE.
a very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat)
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was a moment of horrible peril.
a particular point in time
From this reading It was a moment of horrible peril.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading IN COMMAND OF THE PRIZE.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
a source of danger; a possibility of incurring loss or misfortune
From this reading It was a moment of horrible peril.
something given for victory or superiority in a contest or competition or for winning a lottery
From this reading IN COMMAND OF THE PRIZE.
accomplished rapidly and without delay
From this reading But quick as a flash his arm shot up.
the act of firing a projectile
From this reading But quick as a flash his arm shot up.
an intense or violent exertion
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading IN COMMAND OF THE PRIZE.
the act of distorting something so it seems to mean something it was not intended to mean
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading But quick as a flash his arm shot up.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was a moment of horrible peril.
a joint between the distal end of the radius and the proximal row of carpal bones
From this reading And he caught the descending wrist; for an instant the two glared into each other's eyes, straining and twisting.
Chapter 4 of A Prisoner of Morro by Upton Sinclair holds 72 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 4 holds 72 sentences of A Prisoner of Morro, unabridged, divided into 15 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of A Prisoner of Morro by Upton Sinclair exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 72 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 4 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 Prisoner of Morro by Upton Sinclair on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4062 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #24770 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #24770, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 338 minutes of reading across 813 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Prisoner of Morro section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 33 chapters of A Prisoner of Morro 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 Prisoner of Morro, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
