Chapter 8 of A Thief in the Night is here in full — 413 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of A Thief in the Night is here in full — 413 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end. "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?" "Of course I do," said I. "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable. Her jewels are as much the talk as his hunters.
Chapter 8 of A Thief in the Night is here in full — 413 sentences across 83 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/82 · 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.
a cruelly rapacious person
From this reading “"They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.”
a young waitress in a nightclub whose costume includes the tail and ears of a rabbit
From this reading “"Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"”
plural of “hunter” — someone who hunts game
From this reading “Her jewels are as much the talk as his hunters.”
plural of “jewel” — a precious or semiprecious stone incorporated into a piece of jewelry
From this reading “Her jewels are as much the talk as his hunters.”
British colonial administrator who founded Singapore (1781-1826)
From this reading “Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.”
past form of “snatch” — to grasp hastily or eagerly
From this reading “Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.”
resistant to change of position or condition
From this reading “"They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.”
United States architect known for his steel framed skyscrapers and for coining the phrase “form follows function” (1856-1924)
From this reading “Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.”
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.
as might be expected
In this reading “"Of course I do," said I.”
people who have possessions and wealth (considered as a group)
In this reading “"They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.”
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 "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
(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 "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
a cruelly rapacious person
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
a young waitress in a nightclub whose costume includes the tail and ears of a rabbit
From this reading "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
treated by heating to a high temperature but below the melting or fusing point
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading "Of course I do," said I.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
either extremity of something that has length
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
all things; all of a situation
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
opinion or judgment
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading Her jewels are as much the talk as his hunters.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
plural of “hunter” — someone who hunts game
From this reading Her jewels are as much the talk as his hunters.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "Of course I do," said I.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
plural of “jewel” — a precious or semiprecious stone incorporated into a piece of jewelry
From this reading Her jewels are as much the talk as his hunters.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
plural of “lip” — either of two fleshy folds of tissue that surround the mouth and play a role in speaking
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
mean or intend to express or convey
From this reading "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
to a great degree or extent
From this reading Her jewels are as much the talk as his hunters.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "Of course I do," said I.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
British colonial administrator who founded Singapore (1781-1826)
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
possessing material wealth
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Of course I do," said I.
past form of “snatch” — to grasp hastily or eagerly
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
use up a period of time in a specific way
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
resistant to change of position or condition
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
United States architect known for his steel framed skyscrapers and for coining the phrase “form follows function” (1856-1924)
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
exchange thoughts; talk with
From this reading Her jewels are as much the talk as his hunters.
express in words
From this reading "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Raffles snatched the Sullivan from his lips, and his eyes burned like its end.
in or at that place or location
From this reading "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned
From this reading "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "They are rich people, and he's not such a brute as to spend everything on his stable.
any movable possession (especially articles of clothing)
From this reading "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "Bunny, do you mean to tell me there are all these things?"
Chapter 8 of A Thief in the Night by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung holds 413 sentences, grouped into 83 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 8 holds 413 sentences of A Thief in the Night, unabridged, divided into 83 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 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 413 sentences, grouped into 83 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 83 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 83 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 8 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.
