Chapter 6 of A Thief in the Night is here in full — 407 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 Thief in the Night is here in full — 407 sentences across 82 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length. "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour." "I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account. "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night." My heart was knocking me to bits.
Chapter 6 of A Thief in the Night is here in full — 407 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.
plural of “bit” — a small piece or quantity of something
From this reading “My heart was knocking me to bits.”
a place off to the side of an area
From this reading “"I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."”
the act of giving
From this reading “"We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."”
the sound of knocking (as on a door or in an engine or bearing)
From this reading “My heart was knocking me to bits.”
relating to or applicable to or concerned with the administration of a city or town or district rather than a larger area
From this reading “"We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."”
the force of policemen and officers
From this reading “"We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."”
past form of “rejoin” — join again
From this reading “"I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account.”
unique or specific to a person or thing or category
From this reading “"We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."”
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 “"We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."”
in a lengthy or prolix manner
In this reading “"I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.”
In this reading “"I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account.”
keep under careful scrutiny
In this reading “"We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."”
In this reading “"I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."”
In this reading “"I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.”
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 "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
a record or narrative description of past events
From this reading "I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account.
later than; following
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
plural of “bit” — a small piece or quantity of something
From this reading My heart was knocking me to bits.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
a place off to the side of an area
From this reading "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
the act of giving
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
the locus of feelings and intuitions
From this reading My heart was knocking me to bits.
a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
and nothing more
From this reading "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."
the sound of knocking (as on a door or in an engine or bearing)
From this reading My heart was knocking me to bits.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading "I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account.
the linear extent in space from one end to the other; the longest dimension of something that is fixed in place
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
relating to or applicable to or concerned with the administration of a city or town or district rather than a larger area
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
past form of “look” — perceive with attention; direct one's gaze towards
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading My heart was knocking me to bits.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account.
inflected form of “meet” — come together
From this reading "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."
a form of address for a man
From this reading "I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."
have ownership or possession of
From this reading "I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."
the force of policemen and officers
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
past form of “rejoin” — join again
From this reading "I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
100 senti equal 1 kroon in Estonia
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
used to say what is right, expected, or advisable
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
unique or specific to a person or thing or category
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "I know that, Mr. Medlicott," I rejoined on my own account.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading "I met one of them at the corner just now, and we passed the time of night."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading My heart was knocking me to bits.
the speaker and others, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading My heart was knocking me to bits.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)
From this reading "We are being quite well looked after by the local police; they're giving us a special call every hour."
the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase “the whys and wherefores”
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I don't see why they should have sent you down," he said at length.
Chapter 6 of A Thief in the Night by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung holds 407 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 407 sentences of A Thief in the Night, unabridged, divided into 82 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of A Thief in the Night by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 407 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.
Common questions about reading A Thief in the Night by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3677 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #33173 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #33173, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 306 minutes of reading across 736 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through A Thief in the Night section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of A Thief in the Night 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 Thief in the Night, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
